Stafford County, VA Animal Ordinances: Pet Groomer Rules (2026)

Sec. 5-1 defines "groomer" as any person who, for a fee, cleans, trims, brushes, makes neat, manicures, or treats for external parasites any animal. Sec. 5-6, the county's core animal-welfare provision, requires every owner to provide each companion animal with adequate feed, adequate water, adequate shelter that is properly cleaned, adequate space in the primary enclosure, adequate exercise, adequate care, treatment and transportation, and veterinary care when needed to prevent suffering or disease transmission. Subsection (a) goes on to state that the provisions of the section also apply to every public or private animal shelter, releasing agency, foster care provider, dealer, pet shop, exhibitor, kennel, groomer and boarding establishment, so a groomer holding animals in its custody, even briefly during a grooming appointment, is bound by the same feed, water, shelter, space, exercise and veterinary-care duties as an owner.

A related provision, Sec. 5-9, makes it a Class 3 misdemeanor for a dealer, commercial dog breeder or pet shop to fail to adequately house, feed, water, exercise or care for animals in its possession, with failure also grounds for revoking any permit after a public hearing; while Sec. 5-9 names dealers and pet shops rather than groomers by name, its animals-in-custody standard tracks Sec. 5-6's groomer coverage. Violations of Sec. 5-6 itself are graded: a first offense is a Class 4 misdemeanor, a second or subsequent violation of the feed, water, shelter or veterinary-care duties is a Class 2 misdemeanor, and a second or subsequent violation of the space, exercise or general-care duties is a Class 3 misdemeanor.