Haverford, PA Animal Ordinances: Pet Limits (2026)

Section 49-9 of the Haverford Township Code sets the dog cap. It counts dogs three months of age or older, and it applies in two situations: a residential housing unit on a lot less than one acre in area, and any industrial or business establishment or its grounds. The text speaks only of dogs. It prints no household cap for cats or other pets, so the four-dog number should not be read as a cap on cats.

The exemption is narrow. The restriction does not apply to properly licensed catteries, kennels, pet shops, pounds and shelters. A household that wants more than four dogs on a lot under one acre has no permit route in this section, and the Board of Commissioners wrote no variance mechanism into it.

Enforcement runs through the Animal Control Officer, a sworn officer appointed by the Township Manager and supervised by the Haverford Township Police Department under § 49-2. Interfering with that officer is itself a violation. Under § 49-10G, the Director of Code Enforcement inspects premises where a complaint has been made about animal structures and issues the orders needed to carry out the section.

Dogs counted toward the cap also carry other duties in the same chapter. Under § 49-12, any person keeping a canine over six months of age in Haverford Township must hold a current Pennsylvania state dog license, and a license tag cannot be moved from one dog to another. Rabies vaccination under § 49-16 is due once a young animal reaches three months of age, the same age line the dog cap uses.

Township animal rules apply only inside Haverford Township. Neighboring Upper Darby, Radner-area Radnor, Marple and Lower Merion townships keep their own codes.