Gary, IN Animal Ordinances: Pet Groomer Rules (2026)

Section 8-1 of the Gary Municipal Code defines a commercial animal establishment as any pet shop, grooming shop, zoological park, performing animal exhibition, or kennel, and separately defines a grooming shop as a commercial establishment where animals are bathed, clipped, plucked, or otherwise groomed. Section 8-70(a) requires any person, partnership, or corporation to obtain a permit before operating a commercial animal establishment, in addition to any animal licenses required under § 8-69, and directs the rabies control unit or animal control center to promulgate regulations covering humane care of the animals, compliance with the article, and public health and welfare, all filed with the city clerk's office.

Under § 8-70(b), a permit issues once the applicant shows willingness and ability to comply with those regulations, runs for the fiscal year, and renewal applications are due 30 days before through 30 days after the fiscal year begins; a new establishment may apply for its first permit at any time. Section 8-70(c) allows a permit to transfer to a new owner on payment of a transfer fee if ownership of the grooming shop changes, and § 8-70(d) treats every regulated facility as a separate enterprise requiring its own permit, with fees set in Chapter 20 and adjusted if the establishment's category changes.

Section 8-71 lets the animal control center revoke a grooming shop's permit for noncompliance, for refusing an inspection of the premises and animals, or if the applicant withheld or falsified information; a person convicted of animal cruelty cannot be issued a permit at all, and a denied applicant must wait 30 days to reapply.