Springdale, AR Animal Ordinances: Pet Limits (2026)
Key Facts
- Threshold
- more than 5 animals over 4 months old
- Trigger
- reclassified as kennel/animal shelter use
- Kennels need
- zoning authorization plus business license
- Max fine
- $1,000 per violation, $500/day continuing
Summary
In Springdale, Arkansas, keeping more than five pets over four months old on one property makes it an 'animal shelter or kennel' under the zoning code, triggering kennel-zone and licensing requirements instead of by-right residential use.
Animal shelter or kennel means a public or private facility including outside runs for enclosure of animals, especially stray or unlicensed pets, or for pets being boarded for short periods of time, where more than five (5) or more animals, more than four (4) months of age are kept.
Animal slaughtering and processing means a facility for the slaughtering and/or processing of animals into human food and the refining of their byproducts.
Antique shop means an establishment offering for sale, within a building, articles such as glass, china, furniture or similar furnishings and decorations which have value and significance as a result of age, design, or sentiment.
Apartment hotel means a facility offering transient lodging accommodation to the general public and where rooms or suites may include kitchen facilities and sitting rooms in addition to the bedroom. Differs from the typical hotel in that transients are likely to rent rooms or suites for longer periods.
Apartment unit means one (1) or more rooms with private bath and kitchen facilities comprising an independent, self-contained dwelling unit in a building containing three (3) or more dwelling units.
Apiculture: Beekeeping means one (1) or more hives or boxes occupied by bees (hives or boxes include colonies), but does not include honey houses, extraction house, warehouses, or appliances.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 145).
Full Breakdown
Springdale's zoning ordinance doesn't set a flat 'no more than X pets' rule, but its definitions article draws the line at five: a property with more than five animals over four months old is legally an 'animal shelter or kennel,' a use confined to zones where kennels are authorized and subject to the licensing standards in Chapter 14, enclosure, sanitation, ventilation, and exercise-area rules. Keep five or fewer pets and you're just a household; keep more without the right zoning and business license, and the city can treat the property as an unpermitted kennel.
Violations & Fines
Operating an unlicensed kennel use is punishable under Springdale Code § 130 Art. 10 (fine up to $1,000, or $500/day continuing) and can trigger denial or revocation of the business license required under § 14-15.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many pets can I legally keep at my Springdale home?
What happens if I have more than five pets in a residential zone?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Springdale
Compare Springdale to another location·View the Arkansas animal ordinances overview
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