Hutto, TX Animal Ordinances: Microchipping (2026)

Section 4.08.013, part of article 4.08's dog and cat licensing scheme, is narrower than a blanket microchip mandate: it requires that all dogs and cats impounded by the city be microchipped upon release from the city animal shelter or the Williamson County Regional Animal Shelter. The trigger is impoundment, not ownership, so an animal never picked up by animal control carries no chipping duty under this section, though owners applying for the separate dog and cat license under article 4.08 must still show proof of rabies vaccination under section 4.08.003 and may register at the Williamson County Regional Animal Shelter (WCRAS), 1855 S.E.

Inner Loop, Georgetown, or at Hutto City Hall, 401 West Front Street, per section 4.08.001. A microchipping fee applies per animal, set in the fee schedule in appendix A of the code and adopted by the shelter's governing board. Because the city runs licensing through WCRAS as a regional solution, the microchip becomes the practical way lost pets are matched back to owners once an animal has been impounded at least once. Animal control officers, who enforce chapter 4 under section 4.02.001, and shelter staff carry out the chipping as part of the release process rather than as a standalone citation-triggering offense; a general chapter 4 violation, such as failing to license, is still punishable under section 1.01.009, up to $500, with each day of noncompliance a separate offense under section 4.01.004.