Waco, TX Animal Ordinances: Pet Store Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Core rule
- Pet shops sell only shelter/welfare-group animals
- Breeder/broker supply
- Barred from selling to pet shops
- Recordkeeping
- Shop must document source of each animal
- Public-place sales
- Generally banned outside licensed venues
- Nonprofit exception
- Tax-exempt rescue groups exempt
- Enforcement
- Seizure and impoundment for violations
Summary
A Waco pet shop can only sell or display dogs and cats that came from an animal shelter or an animal welfare group, never from a breeder or broker. Section 5-131 also bars breeders and brokers from supplying pet shops for resale and requires the shop to keep records proving where every dog and cat came from.
(e)A pet shop may only display, sell, trade, deliver, barter, lease, auction, give away, transfer, offer for sale or transfer, or otherwise dispose of dogs or cats that the pet shop has obtained from or displays in cooperation with an animal shelter or an animal welfare group, as defined.(f)All pet shops shall maintain records sufficient to document the animal shelter or animal welfare group source of each dog or cat on the premises and make it available upon request to animal care officers, law enforcement, code enforcement officers, or any other city employee charged with enforcing the provisions of this section.(g)A person commits an offense if the person provides to a pet shop any dog or cat from a breeder or broker with the intent that the pet shop display, sell, trade, deliver, barter, lease, auction, give away, transfer, offer for sale or transfer, or otherwise dispose of the dog or cat.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 88).
Full Breakdown
Section 5-131(a)-(b) bans selling, trading, bartering, leasing, or displaying any animal for commercial purposes on roadsides, public rights-of-way, commercial parking lots, garage sales, flea markets, festivals, parks, or community centers, with an exception in (c) for tax-exempt nonprofits that shelter abandoned or unwanted animals or organizations recognized by the animal authority. Subsection (e) then sets the adoption-only rule for pet shops specifically: a pet shop may only display, sell, trade, deliver, barter, lease, auction, give away, transfer, or otherwise dispose of dogs or cats that it obtained from, or displays in cooperation with, an animal shelter or an animal welfare group.
Subsection (f) requires every pet shop to keep records documenting the shelter or welfare-group source of each dog and cat on its premises and produce those records on request to Animal Care Officers, police, code enforcement, or any other city employee charged with enforcing the section. Subsection (g) closes the supply side: a person commits an offense by providing a pet shop with a dog or cat from a breeder or broker, intending the shop to sell, trade, deliver, barter, lease, auction, give away, transfer, or otherwise dispose of the animal.
Subsection (d) lets the animal authority seize and impound any animal conveyed in violation of the section, subjecting it to the chapter's normal impoundment procedures.
Violations & Fines
Both sides of a prohibited sale can be charged: the pet shop for selling or displaying a dog or cat that did not come from a shelter or welfare group, and the breeder or broker who knowingly supplied it for that purpose. An animal sold or displayed in violation is subject to seizure and impoundment under subsection (d), and a shop that cannot produce sourcing records on request is itself a violation of subsection (f).
Frequently Asked Questions
Can pet stores in Waco sell puppies from breeders?
Where can pet shops in Waco legally get the dogs and cats they sell?
Is it illegal to sell a pet on the roadside or at a flea market in Waco?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Waco
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