Animal Ordinances in Hoboken, NJ (2026)
5 verified animal ordinances for Hoboken, New Jersey, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Chickens & Livestock
In the City of Hoboken, keeping livestock or unlawful wildlife is prohibited outright unless the owner obtains a specific license from the Health Officer under Section 136-2A(24). Keeping any animal, licensed or not, under unsanitary conditions is a separate nuisance violation under Section 136-2A(22).
Hoboken Livestock Keeping License Requirement
Heavy RestrictionsHoboken City Code § 136-2A(22), (24)
(22) The keeping of any animal or animals under unsanitary conditions. ... (24) No person shall keep or harbor any livestock or unlawful wildlife unless specifically licensed to do so from by the Health Officer or pursuant to law.
Dog Leash Laws
In the City of Hoboken, Code § 93-20 makes it unlawful to let a dog onto any sidewalk, public street, City park, walkway or public building unless the dog is with its owner and controlled by an adequate leash no longer than six feet, except inside a designated City dog run. The Waterfront Walkway allows dogs only on paved sections, still on that same six-foot leash, and guide dogs are exempt from the whole section.
Hoboken Dog Leash Law Six-Foot Limit
Some RestrictionsHoboken City Code § 93-20
A. No person owning, keeping or harboring a dog shall suffer or permit it to be upon the sidewalk, public streets, City parks, walkways, public building or public place, within the City of Hoboken, unless the dog is accompanied by its owner or keeper and is safely confined and controlled by an adequate leash not more than six feet long, except if the dog is in a City dog run. ... B. Dogs shall ...
Pet Store Rules
In the City of Hoboken, Code § 93-15 bars every pet shop and pet shop operator from selling, offering for sale, bartering, auctioning or breeding cats or dogs anywhere in the city, a puppy-mill style retail ban with no grandfather clause beyond legally existing nonconforming uses. Shelters, pounds and adoption events stay fully legal, and the same section lets any establishment keep, display, sell or transfer a cat or dog that was seized, rescued or donated.
Hoboken Pet Shop Dog and Cat Sale Ban
Heavy RestrictionsHoboken City Code §§ 93-15, 93-17F
No pet shop or pet shop operator shall sell, offer for sale, barter, auction, breed or otherwise improperly dispose of cats or dogs, or both, in the City of Hoboken. This section shall not apply to legally existing nonconforming uses or to the adoption of cats or dogs, or both. Nothing contained herein shall prohibit a shelter, pound or other establishment from keeping, displaying, selling or o...
Pet Groomer Rules
In the City of Hoboken, City Code § 196-19G(3) confines animal grooming businesses in commercial districts to the first floor or basement, requires sound-attenuation to block noise migration, limits drop-off animals to a four-hour stay, and caps hours to 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Hoboken Pet Grooming Business Zoning Rules
Some RestrictionsHoboken City Code § 196-19G(3)
(3) Animal, grooming. (a) Where permitted as a use, animal grooming services shall only be located on the first floor or basement floor of the building in which they are housed. (b) Sound-attenuation measures shall be taken to prevent sound migration to other parts of the host building, to adjacent structures, and to the public right-of-way. ... (c) Animals dropped off for grooming services sha...
Veterinary Clinic Zoning
In the City of Hoboken, veterinary services in the C-1 through C-4 commercial districts must sit on the first floor or basement of the host building and meet strict conditional-use standards under City Code § 196-19G(4), including drug-security and sound-attenuation requirements.
Hoboken Veterinary Services Zoning Rules
Some RestrictionsHoboken City Code § 196-19G(4)
(4) Animal, veterinary services. (a) Where permitted, veterinary services shall only be located on the first floor or basement floor of the building in which they are housed. (b) Measures for securing medical equipment, pharmaceutical drugs, gases, and other controlled substances must be demonstrated. (c) Measures for dealing with hazardous and animal waste must be demonstrated. (d) Sound-...