Washington, DC Animal Ordinances: Pet Groomer Rules (2026)

02(a) makes it unlawful to operate a commercial pet care facility without first obtaining a basic business license carrying an Inspected Sales and Services endorsement, issued under the basic business license system in subchapter I-A of Chapter 28 of Title 47, and directs the Mayor to issue rules establishing the standards for how animals must be cared for and managed at these facilities. 02(b) defines the covered business broadly: any facility providing day or overnight boarding, or pet-related services including feeding, exercise, training, bathing, or grooming, falls under the license requirement.

Two carve-outs matter for who actually needs this endorsement: the definition excludes a licensed pet shop, and it excludes what the Code calls an 'animal facility' under the now-repealed § 3-502, so a grooming counter inside a licensed pet shop is not separately captured by this section. 01, which applies to anyone breeding and raising more than 25 animals a year for sale or consideration, so a groomer that also runs a breeding operation on the same premises needs both endorsements, not just one. Because the pet care facility license sits inside Title 47's licensing framework, operating without it also exposes a business to the general Title 47 licensing penalty at § 47-2846, which applies whenever a chapter violation carries no more specific penalty of its own.