15 county-level rules, plus city-specific rules for 4 cities in Bexar County, Texas.
Verified from official government sources
Unincorporated Bexar County allows backyard chickens and small livestock with no numeric limit; HOA covenants often restrict. San Antonio allows up to 8 hens, no roosters, with a 20-foot coop setback.
Tex. Agric. Code Sec. 161.041 (Duty to Report Diseased or Exposed Livestock / Domestic Fowl)
Sec. 161.041. DISEASE CONTROL.(a) The commission shall protect all livestock, exotic livestock, domestic fowl, and exotic fowl from diseases the commission determines require control or eradication. The commission shall adopt and periodically update rules listing the diseases that require control or eradication by the commission. Section 2001.0045, Government Code, does not apply to rules a...
Unincorporated Bexar County enforces a county leash order and TX Health and Safety Code 822 through Animal Control Services. San Antonio Chapter 5 requires leashes (8 feet max) in public spaces.
Tex. Health & Safety Code Sec. 822.041 (Dangerous Dogs - Definitions)
Sec. 822.041. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:(1) "Animal control authority" means a municipal or county animal control office with authority over the area where the dog is kept or a county sheriff in an area with no animal control office.(2) "Dangerous dog" means a dog that:(A) makes an unprovoked attack on a person that causes bodily injury and occurs in a place other than an enclosure i...
Texas preempts breed-specific laws under TX Health and Safety Code 822.047, so Bexar County and San Antonio cannot ban any breed. Lillian's Law applies to any dangerous dog regardless of breed.
Texas Health & Safety Code Sec. 822.047 (Local Regulation of Dangerous Dogs - No Breed-Specific Bans)
Sec. 822.047. LOCAL REGULATION OF DANGEROUS DOGS. A county or municipality may place additional requirements or restrictions on dangerous dogs if the requirements or restrictions: (1) are not specific to one breed or several breeds of dogs; and (2) are more stringent than restrictions provided by this subchapter.
Beekeeping is protected under TX Agriculture Code Chapter 131 with Texas Apiary Inspection Service oversight. Unincorporated Bexar County has no local rule; San Antonio allows backyard hives with limits.
Texas Agriculture Code Chapter 131 (Bees and Honey)
CHAPTER 131. BEES AND HONEY. Sec. 131.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter: (1) 'Abandoned apiary, equipment, or bees' means an apiary, equipment, or a colony of bees that is not regularly maintained or attended in accordance with this chapter or rules or quarantines adopted under this chapter. (2) 'Apiary' means a place where colonies of bees or nuclei of bees are kept. (3) 'Beekeeper' means a pe...
Bexar County restricts dangerous wild animals through Texas Health and Safety Code Chapter 822, Subchapter E, requiring registration and certificate of registration with Bexar County Animal Care Services for tigers, lions, bears, and other listed species kept in unincorporated areas.
Texas Health & Safety Code Secs. 822.101, 822.103 (Dangerous Wild Animals)
SUBCHAPTER E. DANGEROUS WILD ANIMALS. Sec. 822.101. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter: (1) 'Animal registration agency' means the municipal or county animal control office with authority over the area where a dangerous wild animal is kept or a county sheriff in an area that does not have an animal control office. ... Sec. 822.103. CERTIFICATE OF REGISTRATION; FEES. (a) A person may not own, harbo...
Texas Parks and Wildlife Code governs wildlife feeding in Bexar County. Feeding deer is legal on private property, but feeding that attracts coyotes or javelina can trigger TPWD and nuisance action.
Unincorporated Bexar County sets no numeric livestock limits; TX Ag Code Ch. 142 estrays and Ch. 143 stock laws apply. San Antonio restricts livestock to AG-zoned or legal nonconforming AG parcels.
Texas Agriculture Code Chapter 142 (Estrays)
CHAPTER 142. ESTRAYS. Sec. 142.001. DEFINITIONS. (1) 'Estray' means stray livestock, stray exotic livestock, stray bison, or stray exotic fowl. ... Sec. 142.003. DISCOVERY OF ESTRAY; NOTICE. (a) If an estray, without being herded with other livestock, roams about the property of a person without that person's permission or roams about public property, the owner of the private property or the cu...
Bexar County prosecutes animal hoarding under Texas Penal Code 42.092 (animal cruelty) and Texas Health and Safety Code 821 (seizure of cruelly treated animals), with Bexar County Animal Care Services and BCSO investigating complaints in unincorporated areas.
Texas Penal Code Secs. 42.092, 42.107 (Cruelty/Hoarding)
Sec. 42.092. CRUELTY TO NONLIVESTOCK ANIMALS. (a) In this section: (1) 'Abandon' includes abandoning an animal in the person's custody without making reasonable arrangements for assumption of custody by another person. (2) 'Animal' means a domesticated living creature, including any stray or feral cat or dog, and a wild living creature previously captured. ... Sec. 42.107. POSSESSION OF ANIMAL ...
Bexar County does not impose a hard pet-limit ordinance in unincorporated areas, deferring to nuisance, sanitation, and zoning rules under Texas Local Government Code 240, with Bexar County Animal Care Services responding to complaints when conditions exceed reasonable property capacity.
Bexar County requires cats over four months old to be vaccinated against rabies under Texas Health and Safety Code 826.021, but the unincorporated county has no leash law for cats, allowing outdoor and community cat populations through TNR programs administered by Animal Care Services.
Texas Health & Safety Code Secs. 826.018, 826.021 (Rabies Control Act)
Sec. 826.021. VACCINATION OF DOGS AND CATS REQUIRED. (a) Except as otherwise provided by department rule, the owner of a dog or cat shall have the animal vaccinated against rabies by the time the animal is four months of age and thereafter periodically. Sec. 826.018. LOCAL RABIES CONTROL PROGRAMS. (a) This section applies to a veterinarian who: (1) is employed by a county or municipality; and (...
Bexar County does not impose mandatory spay-neuter on all pets, but Texas Health and Safety Code 828 requires sterilization of animals adopted from public shelters including Bexar County Animal Care Services, with enforcement through adoption contracts and veterinary follow-up.
Texas Health & Safety Code Secs. 828.002-828.003 (Dog and Cat Sterilization)
Sec. 828.002. REQUIREMENTS FOR ADOPTION. Except as provided by Section 828.013, a releasing agency may not release a dog or cat for adoption unless the animal has been sterilized or the release is made to a new owner who signs an agreement to have the animal sterilized. Sec. 828.003. STERILIZATION AGREEMENT. (a) The sterilization agreement used by a releasing agency must contain: (1) the date o...
Bexar County does not mandate microchipping for privately owned pets in unincorporated areas, but Bexar County Animal Care Services microchips all adopted animals and strongly recommends owners register chips with national databases to facilitate lost pet recovery.
Bexar County treats coyotes as non-game wildlife under Texas Parks and Wildlife Code 71.001, allowing landowner removal without permit when coyotes threaten livestock, pets, or property, while emphasizing hazing and habitat modification through Bexar County Animal Care Services education programs.
Bexar County does not regulate retail pet store sourcing in unincorporated areas, deferring to Texas Occupations Code Chapter 802 licensed-breeder rules and federal USDA APHIS oversight, with no countywide ban on commercial puppy or kitten sales as some Texas cities have adopted.
Wildlife rehabilitation in Bexar County requires a Texas Parks and Wildlife Department rehabilitator permit under 31 TAC 69.45 plus federal U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service migratory-bird permits where applicable, with no separate county permit but mandatory facility inspections and species-specific authorization.
Texas Parks & Wildlife Code Secs. 43.021-43.022 (Rehabilitation Permits)
SUBCHAPTER C. PERMITS FOR SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH, ZOOLOGICAL COLLECTION, REHABILITATION, AND EDUCATIONAL DISPLAY. Sec. 43.021. PROTECTED WILDLIFE. In this subchapter, 'protected wildlife' means all indigenous mammals, indigenous birds, indigenous reptiles, indigenous amphibians, and indigenous aquatic animal life ... and includes endangered species. Sec. 43.022. PERMIT REQUIREMENT. (a) No person m...
4 cities in Bexar County have their own animal ordinances rules. Each link goes to that city's dedicated page with code citations.
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