Franklin, TN Animal Ordinances: Pet Store Rules (2026)

Adopted by Ordinance No. 2018-35 on December 11, 2018, section 10-302 of the Franklin Municipal Code (title 10, chapter 3) is the city's answer to puppy-mill retailing: a pet store, defined in § 10-301 as 'a retail establishment where dogs and cats are offered for sale as pet animals to the general public at retail,' may offer for sale only dogs and cats obtained from or displayed in cooperation with an 'animal care facility' (a shelter or control center run by or contracted with a state, county, or municipality) or an 'animal rescue organization' (a 501(c)(3) nonprofit whose mission is rescue and rehoming).

The ordinance's definitions section is explicit that a rescue organization cannot be affiliated with, housed with, or supplied by a breeder or broker in exchange for payment, closing the loophole where a 'rescue' is really a broker relabeling breeder stock. No animal younger than eight weeks old may be offered for sale, and each cage or enclosure must conspicuously display the name and contact information of the source animal care facility or rescue organization so a buyer can verify provenance on the spot. Section 10-302(B) separately requires every pet store to keep records documenting where each dog or cat came from for at least one year after acquisition, giving Franklin's animal control officer (title 10, chapter 1) a paper trail to check compliance.

The rule applies only to pet stores selling dogs and cats at retail; it does not reach breeders selling directly, animal shelters, or rescue organizations themselves, and it leaves the separate Williamson County dog and cat regulations adopted under § 10-201 untouched.