Minnetonka, MN Animal Ordinances: Pet Store Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- License required
- To operate any pet shop in the city
- Covered animals
- Live dogs, cats, hamsters, small animals, birds, reptiles, fish
- Expiration
- December 31 of each year
- Ventilation
- At least 15 air changes per hour
- Animal housing
- Entirely within an enclosed building, none outside
- Sale ban
- None in section 825
Summary
In the City of Minnetonka, Minnesota, a pet shop, defined as a place for the exhibition, sale or purchase of live dogs, cats and other animals, needs a city license that expires December 31 each year. The code licenses and regulates pet stores but contains no ban on selling dogs or cats.
2. “Pet shop” means a place kept or maintained for the exhibition, sale or purchase of live dogs, cats, hamsters, or other small animals, or birds, reptiles, or fish. ... A person must not operate a pet shop in the city unless the business is currently licensed under this section.
Full Breakdown
Section 825 of the Minnetonka City Code treats pet stores in the City of Minnetonka as a licensed business, not a prohibited one. Section 825.005 defines a pet shop as a place kept or maintained for the exhibition, sale or purchase of live dogs, cats, hamsters, or other small animals, or birds, reptiles, or fish. Section 825.010 then says a person must not operate a pet shop in the city unless the business is currently licensed. Nothing in section 825 limits where dogs or cats come from or confines sales to adoptions.
The application goes to the community development department with the license fee set in chapter 710, the applicant's name and residence, the shop location, the owners of the location, the number and types of animals proposed to be handled, and a detailed plan of the premises. The application is subject to chapter 700, and after review by the department and the health authority the department director grants or denies the license. Licenses expire December 31 of each year.
Conditions in section 825.030 govern the shop itself. Rooms need at least 20 foot candles of light and mechanical ventilation with at least 15 air changes per hour under negative pressure. Doors and windows must be screened from May 1 to October 1. Cages and pens must be metal or equal construction and mounted on casters or six inch metal legs. Animals must be kept entirely inside an enclosed building, in a manner that prevents contact with the public. Animals subject to distemper and infectious hepatitis must be inoculated by a Minnesota-licensed veterinarian before delivery and individually caged, and monkeys need a yearly tuberculin test.
Section 825.025 bars bringing an animal with an infectious or contagious disease into a pet shop or the city, and bars selling an animal capable of transmitting rabies that cannot be inoculated against it. Section 825.035 exempts sellers of frogs, fish, worms or reptiles for live fishing bait, and veterinary hospitals or kennels where only occasional sales are made.
Violations & Fines
Operating a pet shop without a license violates section 825.010 and the general prohibition in section 1310.005. Section 1310.010 makes a violation a misdemeanor, treats each calendar day as a separate offense, and requires a person who fails to obtain a required approval to pay a penalty equal to the fee for it. Diseased animals must be humanely destroyed unless the disease is curable and a licensed veterinarian is treating the animal.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a Minnetonka pet store sell puppies and kittens?
When does a pet shop license expire?
What are the animal care conditions for a pet shop?
Does the pet shop section apply to bait shops and kennels?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Minnetonka
Compare Minnetonka to another location·View the Minnesota animal ordinances overview
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