Perth Amboy, NJ Animal Ordinances: Pet Groomer Rules (2026)

Perth Amboy's dog chapter defines a pet-grooming establishment as any room or group of rooms used for the cutting, washing of dogs or cats. Section 199-9 places it in the same licensing group as kennels, pet shops and shelters, so a groomer in the City of Perth Amboy, Middlesex County, answers to the Health Division rather than to the City Clerk who issues ordinary dog licenses.

The application has to describe the premises where the establishment is located or is proposed to be located and the purpose or purposes for which it is to be maintained. It must be accompanied by the written approval of the Health Officer of the Division of Health of the city, showing compliance with the local and state rules and regulations governing location of and sanitation at such establishments. In practice that means a groomer signs a lease or buys a building only after the Health Officer has looked at the space.

Each license states the purpose for which the establishment is maintained. All licenses expire on the last day of January of each year, so renewal falls in the same month every year. A license holder does not need individual dog licenses for dogs owned by the licensee and kept at the establishment, and the license is not transferable to another owner or different premises. A new owner or a new address means a new application.

Section 199-10 sets the fee: the annual license fee for a pet-grooming establishment is $75, the same figure charged to a pet shop. A kennel pays $25 for ten or fewer dogs and $40 for more than ten dogs, and a shelter pays nothing.

The City Council holds the revocation power. It can revoke a license on the recommendation of the State Department of Health or the city Division of Health when the holder fails to comply with their rules, but only after the owner has been afforded a hearing.