Bloomfield, NJ Animal Ordinances: Pet Store Rules (2026)

Section 134-26 of the Bloomfield Township Code is the licensing rule for animal businesses. Any person who keeps or operates or proposes to establish a kennel, a pet shop, a shelter or a pound, or to breed animals, applies to the Health Officer. The application describes the premises and the purpose of the establishment and must be accompanied by the written approval of the Township Health Officer showing compliance with the local and state rules governing location of and sanitation at such establishments.

Every license states the purpose for which the establishment is maintained and expires on the last day of January of the following year. The license is not transferable to another owner or different premises, and a license holder does not need individual licenses for dogs the licensee owns and keeps at the establishment. The annual fee is $50 for a pet shop, $75 for a kennel with accommodations for 10 or fewer dogs, and $125 for a kennel with more than 10 dogs. No fee is charged for a shelter or pound.

Subsection D gives the Township Council discretion to refuse a license for any of these businesses at a place where, in the Council's judgment, the business will be detrimental or injurious to the peace and quiet of the neighborhood. Section 134-2 draws the line between the categories: a pet shop is any room, group of rooms, cage or exhibition pen, not part of a kennel, where pets for sale are kept or displayed, and a kennel is an establishment that boards or sells dogs or breeds dogs for sale.

Section 134-27 adds a product rule. It is unlawful to sell or offer for sale, barter or give away rabbits, baby chicks, ducklings or other fowl as pets or novelties. Live rabbits, baby chickens or other domestic fowl under three weeks of age cannot be sold in lots of fewer than six to a single sale, though hatcheries and stores selling in proper brooder facilities to be raised for commercial purposes are excluded. Neither § 134-26 nor § 134-27 bans the retail sale of dogs or cats.