Pet shops
What do I need to know?
To run a business selling pet animals you must first issue you with a licence. This includes all commercial selling of pet animals, including pet shops and businesses selling animals over the internet.
Licences for pet shops may be issued provided the applicant is not disqualified under any of the following Acts:
- The Pet Animals Act 1951
- The Animal Boarding Establishments Act 1963
- The Protection of Animals (Amendment ) Act 1954
- The Protection of Animals (Cruelty to Dogs) (Scotland) Act 1934.
Information/evidence required
Before we grant a licence the applicant must be able to demonstrate to the our Licensing Inspector:
- That they are suitably qualified to keep animals with regard to the type and number proposed to be kept
- That the animals will be kept in accommodation that is suitable in respect of construction, size, temperature lighting, ventilation and cleanliness
- That animals will be adequately supplied with suitable food, drink and bedding materials and (so far as is necessary) visited at suitable intervals
- That mammals will not be sold at too early an age
- That all reasonable precautions will be taken to prevent the spread of infectious disease amongst the animals
- That appropriate steps will be taken to protect the animals in the case of fire or other emergency, including the provision of suitable fire fighting equipment
- That a register containing a description of any animal received on the premises, the animals age and sex, the date of acquisition and departure and the source from which the animals are received, and that the register will be available for inspection at all times by a Licensing Inspector or by a veterinary Surgeon or Veterinary Practitioner authorised by the Council
- No animal will be sold to a child under the age of 12 years.
Each licence is subject to standard conditions that are imposed on all pet shops that we licence. In addition to the standard conditions a licence may also contain special conditions that are only applicable to your premises.
Regulations
View a summary of the regulation relating to this licence
Offences and penalties
The following offences and penalties apply to the pet shops.
- Any person found guilty of keeping a pet shop without a licence may be subject to a fine not exceeding £500 or to three months imprisonment or both
- Any person found guilty of failing to comply with their licence conditions may be subject to a fine not exceeding £500 or to three months imprisonment or both
- Any person found guilty of obstructing or delaying an Inspector, or authorised Veterinary Surgeon or Veterinary Practitioner in the exercising of their powers of entry may be fined up to a maximum of £500
- If found guilty under this Act, the defendant's licence may be cancelled and they may be disqualified from keeping a pet shop for such length of time as the Court thinks fit.