Newfoundland and Labrador Dog Breeder Licensing Requirements

No provincial licence is required to breed or sell dogs. The Animal Health and Protection Act allows Cabinet to "by regulation require an activity, a person, or an establishment to be licensed" (s. 55(1)), but none of the regulations made under the Act requires a kennel or breeder licence. The rules that do apply come from the Animal Protection Standards Regulations, which define a kennel to include "a breeding facility, boarding facility, housing facility, training facility or animal shelter where a dog is maintained or kept", other than a pet retail store or veterinary clinic (s. 2(1)(e)). The owner or operator of a kennel must comply with the requirements of the CVMA Code of Practice for Canadian Kennel Operations, Third Edition (2018), as adopted except for its transport section and appendices (s. 6 and Schedule A), and every dog owner and every kennel owner or operator must comply with the Basic Standards of Dog Care in Schedule B (s. 13). A pet retail store may not sell a dog unless the dog was bred and raised in an establishment that meets the Kennel Code requirements adopted in the regulations, or equivalent standards, though stores may host adoptions by qualifying animal shelters (Animal Protection Regulations, s. 16). Every dog owner must keep the dog safely contained at all times, with exceptions such as a dog on a leash (Act, s. 32). Municipal dog licensing may also apply; in St. John's, the owner of any dog aged six months or more must license it with the city and renew the licence every year (St. John's Animal Control Regulation, By-Law 1514, s. 6), and the by-law has no breeder or kennel licence.

There is no provincial licence to apply for. A breeder's obligations are to meet the adopted Kennel Code requirements and the Basic Standards of Dog Care. Municipal requirements, such as the annual dog licence in St. John's (By-Law 1514, s. 6), are handled by the municipality.

There is no provincial breeder or kennel licence fee. Costs come from compliance with the care standards and any municipal dog licence fees. On conviction, a court may order the person to pay the cost of transportation, food, care, shelter or treatment provided to the animal (Act, s. 76(5)).

The minister designates inspectors; the Chief Veterinary Officer and the department's staff veterinarians, and members of the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, are treated as designated (Act, s. 68). The minister may also designate a municipal authority to administer the Act within the municipality (s. 77). An inspector may, without a warrant and during normal business hours, enter a place where animals are kept for sale, hire, exhibition, sport, boarding, breeding, training or another commercial purpose to check compliance, but may enter a dwelling house only with the occupant's consent or a warrant (s. 10). An inspector may also enter land on which a dwelling is located and ask that an animal be produced for viewing (s. 9), may enter with a warrant, or without one in exigent circumstances or where an animal is in immediate distress, to investigate (s. 11), and since August 8, 2025 may order a person to comply with the Act or regulations within a set time (s. 71.1). People at a place an inspector enters must give reasonable assistance, furnish records the inspector reasonably requires, and produce animals for examination (s. 74). Veterinarians must report suspected neglect or abuse to the Chief Veterinary Officer (s. 27). The Basic Standards of Dog Care include: no more than three dogs in one pen; a floor of at least 9 square metres for one dog, with the length and width each increased by one metre for each added dog; pen floors not made of wire mesh, metal or wood, and no stacking of pens; a pregnant or nursing dog penned only with her nursing puppies; daily cleaning, social interaction, enrichment and exercise outside the pen; and no unsupervised outdoor containment of a dog that is under six months old, whelping, nursing, in estrus, or aged or infirm (Schedule B, ss. 16 to 29 and 34). The Kennel Code's requirements include that a female is not bred before her second estrous cycle or 18 months of age, whichever comes first, unless a veterinarian recommends otherwise, and that puppies are fully weaned and at least eight weeks old before going to a new owner unless a veterinarian directs otherwise. Ear cropping is prohibited unless a veterinarian removes part of the ear because of injury or medical necessity, and docking a dog's tail is prohibited unless an adopted code permits it or the tail is surgically removed because of an injury or other medical necessity determined by a veterinarian (Act, s. 26; Animal Protection Regulations, ss. 7 and 8).

There is no record-keeping rule written specifically for breeders in the Act or regulations. The Kennel Code that kennels must follow requires individual identification, health and whelping records, kept for at least two years after the animal leaves the premises or dies. Under the regulations, a provision of an adopted code is treated as a requirement where it uses the words "must", "shall" or "require" or where the regulations say so (Animal Protection Standards Regulations, s. 2(2)). During an inspection, the person in charge must furnish any record the inspector reasonably requires (Act, s. 74(b)).

Contravening the Act, the regulations, or an order, licence or permit under them is an offence. For a first offence the fine is up to $50,000 and, in default of payment, imprisonment of up to six months, or both a fine and imprisonment; for a second or subsequent offence the fine is up to $75,000 and, in default of payment, imprisonment of up to 12 months, or both (Act, s. 76(1), as amended by SNL 2024, c. 18, in force August 8, 2025). A judge may also prohibit the person from owning, caring for or having custody of animals, or of a set number or type of animals, for a set period or, for an individual, for life, and may direct that animals be delivered to the SPCA or the minister (s. 76(4)). Many offences can be prosecuted by ticket: failing to comply with the adopted Kennel Code or with the Basic Standards of Dog Care, a pet retail store's prohibited sale of a dog, and causing an animal to be in distress each carry a ticket fine of $300 for a first offence, $750 for a second and $1,500 for a third or subsequent offence (Animal Health and Protection Ticket Offences Regulations, Schedules A, C and D).