Boarding / Kennel Licenses?

For Alameda County, they define a kennel as

any place where more than five dogs are kept or maintained for breeding purposes, training, treating, sale or other commercial purposes.

which is generally more than most sitters take at once. I found this at Alameda County Municipal Code.

My city of Plano, Texas, defines Kennel as any lot, building, structure, enclosure, or premises where five (5) or more adult animals are kept and wherein any person engages in the business of boarding, breeding, buying, letting for hire, training for a fee, or selling dogs, cats, or other animals. If you run a kennel business in the city you will need a license. For me, since I only take in one dog at a time, I don't need any special license. Each city and state is different, though.

In the state of Connecticut you must have a commercial kennel licence with the state to take any dog onto your property and be paid for caring for it. Anyone from the state of Connecticut that does not pay their yearly fee of $200 and get a licence is operating completely illegally. You will be fined $500 per dog and they will put the dog and your property in quarantine. FYI

Boarding/kennel licenses depend on your state, county, and even town. What is true in one town or state might not be the same in a neighboring town or state. Even the definition of "boarding" may vary from one to the next. Try looking for someone that is a true pet sitting professional and does pet sitting as a full time job. Good luck!

I know this is an older post but I would also note for any one like me who stumbles upon it: Alameda County's Municipal Code States:

5.24.030 - Kennel license required. Every person, firm or corporation owning or controlling a kennel within the unincorporated territory of the county shall, within ten days after commencing to keep or maintain a kennel, and each year thereafter on the anniversary date of such license, procure from the director of field services a kennel license.

The key here is that this applies only to unincorporated territory. Most cities in the county are incorporated. Only Ashland ¤ Castlewood ¤ Castro Valley ¤ Cherryland ¤ Fairview ¤ Happy Valley ¤ Hillcrest Knolls ¤ San Lorenzo ¤ Sunol are listed as unincorporated at the time of this post. The others fall to their City Code. Oakland has rules against keeping or boarding more than 5 dogs within 100 ft of a residence, church, etc; but, as long as you do not take more than 5 dogs (including your own) overnight then as I understand it the law wouldn't apply to you - at least as I interpret it.

The CA Bill has not fully passed it still needs concurrence by the State Senate Assembly from what I read here: https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=201520160SB945 (https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/fa...) It sets standards for the care but does not require a license, only that if a person violates the guidelines they could be fined. The guidelines are geared more towards large dog hotel facilities and not in home care - but still set practical guidelines anyone should follow (i.e. don't crate to dogs together unless the owner requests it, keep the premises clean and well lit).