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Pet Shop Licences

The Pet Animals Act 1951 regulates the sale of pet animals from licensed pet shops and provides for powers of inspection by an authorised officer of the council at all reasonable times.

The keeping of a pet shop refers to the carrying on at premises of any nature (including a private dwelling) of a business of selling animals as pets. This excludes keeping or selling pedigree animals bred privately or the offspring of animals kept as pets. Selling animals as pets as a business is prohibited in any part of a street, in a public place, or at a stall or barrow in a market.

View summary of the regulation for this licence.

Apply by Post

Download a Pet Shop Licence application form

Apply Online

Apply to run a pet shop

Tell us about a change to your existing pet shop

General Information

Any premises selling animals as domestic pets or for ornamental purposes needs a pet shop licence.
Animals cannot be sold in the open air or from a market stall.
The Pet Animals Act 1951 does not consider insects to be pets.
Pet shops do not need a dangerous wild animal licence to sell such classified animals.
If you want to run a pet shop you must first obtain a licence.
The running of a pet shop is controlled by the Pet Animals Act 1951.
No person may keep a pet shop unless they have first obtained a licence from their Local Authority.

Licensing of Pet Shops

Pet shop licenses within Stratford on Avon District are granted by the Licensing team. Licenses may be issued provided the applicant is not disqualified under any of the following Acts:-

a) The Pet Animals Act 1951.
b) The Animal Boarding Establishments Act 1963.
c) The Protection of Animals (Amendment ) Act 1954.
d) The Protection of Animals (Cruelty to Dogs) (Scotland) Act 1934.

The fees for Pet Shop Licences are:

Initial Application (grant) £152.00
Renewal Application £105.00

Any Veterinary fees that are incurred as a result of a veterinary inspection is payable directly by the applicant. Fees must be paid at the time the application is made.

Where a licence is granted that licence and any subsequent licence will expire on the 31st December of the year to which it relates and must be renewed before that date if the premises are to continue as a pet shop.

Stratford-on-Avon District Council's Duties

Before being granted a licence the applicant must be able to demonstrate to the Council's Authorised Officer:

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.

A licence may also be refused or withheld on other grounds if those grounds are such that conditions are not suitable for the keeping of animals.

Each Licence is subject to standard conditions that are imposed on all pet shops licensed by the Council.

In addition to the standard conditions a licence may also contain special conditions that are only applicable to your premises.

A licence may be refused or withheld on other grounds if those grounds are such that conditions are not suitable for the keeping of animals.

Each Licence is subject to standard conditions that are imposed on all pet shops licensed by Stratford on Avon District Council.

In addition to the standard conditions a licence may also contain special conditions that are only applicable to your premises.

Your Right of Appeal

Any person aggrieved by a refusal to be granted a licence or by any conditions to which a licence is subject may appeal to the Magistrates Court and they may give such directions regarding the licence or its conditions as they think proper.

Offences & 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 of an offence under this Act, the holders licence may be cancelled and they may be disqualified from keeping a pet shop for such length of time as the Court thinks fit.

Further Information

Copies of the Pet Animals Act 1951 can be purchased from the Office of Public Sector Information.

Trade Associations

Pet Care Trust (PCT)

For further information please contact the Licensing Team on 01789 260211 or by email at licensing@stratford-dc.gov.uk or by fax on 01789 260860.

Downloads:
Application for a Pet Shop Licence (173KB PDF) | Help with PDFs

External links:
Regulation - Pet shop licence | Apply to run a pet shop | Tell us about a change to your existing pet shop | Pet Care Trust | Pet Animals Act 1951

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Stratford-on-Avon District Council
Elizabeth House,
Church Street,
Stratford-upon-Avon,
Warwickshire,
CV37 6HX

E: info@stratford-dc.gov.uk
Tel: 01789 267 575
Fax: 01789 260 007
Minicom: 01789 260 747
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