Lee's Summit, MO Animal Ordinances: Pet Limits (2026)

City code sets the household pet ceiling through its kennel definitions rather than a single stated number. Section 5-2 defines a 'hobby-kennel or hobby-cattery avocation' as care, breeding, showing or sale of dogs or cats by a resident who keeps more than three, but less than six, dogs or cats over six months old on the lot where they live or on a contiguous, non-business-zoned tract. Section 5-2 separately defines a 'kennel or cattery' as six or more dogs or cats, or a combination of both, over six months old kept on a single tract; at that point the property is no longer a private household but a licensed operation.

An adult resident who wants four or five animals must buy a hobby-kennel or hobby-cattery avocation permit under Section 5-86, sited at least 100 yards from the lot boundary for a hobby-kennel or 100 feet for a hobby-cattery, and it cannot sit on land zoned for business. The Supervisor of Animal Control must inspect and approve the site, or its plans, before selling the permit, and every animal on it still needs its own individual license under Division 4 of Article V. Reaching six or more dogs or cats makes the lot a 'kennel or cattery' under Section 5-87: the operator must register with the Finance Department, pay an annual inspection fee, hold a valid City business license, keep the premises clean and odor-free, and pass at least one inspection every calendar year.

Individual breeders who keep no more than two dogs or cats for breeding are handled separately under Section 5-88 and need only an unaltered pet license, not a kennel permit.