Gilroy, CA Animal Ordinances: Pet Groomer Rules (2026)

Gilroy City Code § 4.1 defines a "grooming parlor" as any commercial place where animals are trimmed, bathed or groomed, placing it in the same permit category as pet shops, kennels, animal menageries, animal shelters and horse establishments. Section 4.37 makes it unlawful to conduct, operate or keep a pet grooming parlor without first obtaining an animal control permit from the administrator, and requires that application and annual permit fees be fixed by city council resolution rather than set in the code itself. Under § 4.38, the application must be a written form approved by the administrator listing the types and approximate numbers of animals kept or used at the parlor, and the administrator may impose regulations on the maximum number and species of animals on the premises and on facility construction, sanitation and maintenance; permittees must keep at least two years of records identifying who animals were received from and transferred to.

Section 4.39 lets the administrator or an animal control officer inspect the grooming parlor at any reasonable time as a condition of issuing or renewing the permit, checking compliance with the housing, sanitation, safety and care-of-animals standards set out in § 4.44. The administrator may deny or revoke a grooming parlor's permit under § 4.40 for a facility that fails to meet permit conditions or the chapter's standards, for a wilfully false or withheld application, or for a permit holder convicted of more than two chapter violations, or an animal-cruelty conviction, within the preceding five years; § 4.42 sets each permit to expire twelve months after issuance, and § 4.43 makes any permit personal to the holder and nontransferable.