Allentown does not cap household pets by number directly, but City Code Chapter 163 defines any place keeping more than six dogs or domesticated animals over four months old as a 'kennel,' which is barred from residential zones. Pennsylvania's Dog Law also requires a state kennel license once an owner keeps a regulated number of dogs.
Allentown regulates pet quantity through its kennel definition rather than a flat per-home limit. Under Codified Ordinances Chapter 163 (Animals), a kennel is 'a place, including a dwelling unit, in which more than six dogs or domesticated animals more than four months old are housed, bred, boarded, or sold.' The same chapter provides that 'Kennels and pet shops shall not be permitted in residential areas as defined in Chapter 660, Zoning, but are permitted in other zones of the City as defined in Chapter 660, Zoning, so long as they meet all those zones' requirements.' This effectively limits a residential household to six dogs/domesticated animals over four months old before it is reclassified as a non-permitted kennel use. Separately, Pennsylvania's statewide Dog Law requires a state kennel license for anyone keeping or operating a kennel as defined by 3 P.S. Sec. 459-102; the City's six-animal threshold sits below or near the state kennel trigger, so larger collections may require both local zoning compliance and a state kennel license issued through the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture.
Operating a kennel in a residential zone is a zoning violation enforceable under Chapter 660. Keeping or operating an unlicensed kennel under the state Dog Law carries fines of $100 to $500 per day (7 Pa. Code Sec. 21.4).
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