Dallas City Code Section 7-4.4 requires all dogs and cats over six months old to be spayed or neutered. Owners wishing to keep intact animals must obtain an annual intact-animal permit from Dallas Animal Services.
Dallas enacted one of the strictest mandatory spay-neuter ordinances among major Texas cities. Section 7-4.4 of Chapter 7 makes sterilization the default for all dogs and cats over six months. Exemptions apply only with a paid intact-animal permit, which requires owner attestation, proof of breed-club registration or working-dog status, secure containment, and sometimes inspection. Permits are renewed yearly. Service animals, dogs under six months, and animals with veterinarian-documented health risks from anesthesia are exempt. Dallas Animal Services operates low-cost spay-neuter clinics and partners with the Spay Neuter Network to serve low-income owners. The ordinance aims to reduce shelter intake and euthanasia.
Owning an unsterilized cat or dog over six months without an intact permit is a Class C misdemeanor with fines up to two thousand dollars per animal. Repeat offenses or refusal to sterilize at impoundment can lead to forfeiture.
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