Ontario Dog Breeder Licensing Requirements

Ontario has no provincial licence, permit or registration for dog breeders, kennels or pet stores. Instead, the Provincial Animal Welfare Services Act, 2019 (PAWS Act) requires every owner or custodian of an animal to meet the prescribed standards of care (s. 13) and forbids causing or permitting distress (s. 15). The standards in O. Reg. 444/19 cover food, water, medical attention, space, sanitation, ventilation, light and protection from the elements (s. 3), with extra rules for dogs kept outdoors, such as minimum housing-pen sizes and not housing a female in heat with a male except during supervised mating (ss. 4.1 to 4.5). Since June 6, 2024, the PAWS Act, as amended by the Preventing Unethical Puppy Sales Act, 2024 (PUPS Act), also bans operating a puppy mill (s. 23.2): anyone who breeds dogs and fails to deal with severe matting, visible parasites or emaciation, fails to isolate a dog that may have a contagious disease, or fails to keep each dog's environment clean enough that it need not stand, sit or lie in excrement, urine, mud or water is operating one, however few dogs they keep. Helping a puppy mill operate, for example by supplying a breeding dog or premises, is a separate offence (s. 23.3). The PUPS Act also added rules against breeding a female under 12 months old or before her second heat, breeding a parent with its offspring or breeding siblings, and separating a puppy from its mother before 56 days of age (each subject to exceptions the province may prescribe), but those rules take effect only on a day named by proclamation and were not in force as of October 22, 2026. The act as passed does not cap the number of litters. Other provincial rules: breeding pit bulls is banned (Dog Owners' Liability Act, s. 6); ear cropping and devocalization of dogs are prohibited from January 1, 2027 unless a veterinarian finds them necessary to treat an injury or disease (O. Reg. 152/26); and the Animals for Research Act requires a licence for supply facilities that breed animals under contract with research facilities (s. 2), which may no longer breed cats or dogs for research from January 1, 2027 (s. 3.1). Municipal rules apply on top: Ottawa licenses in-home breeding kennels with more than three dogs over 20 weeks old (Animal Care and Control By-law No. 2003-077, s. 50), and Toronto allows no more than three dogs in and about a dwelling unit (Toronto Municipal Code Chapter 349, s. 349-5).

There is nothing to apply for at the provincial level: Ontario does not license or register dog breeders, and no provincial permit is needed to breed or sell dogs. Breeders should instead make sure their premises and practices meet O. Reg. 444/19 and the puppy mill rules in s. 23.2 of the PAWS Act. In Ottawa, a breeder keeping more than three dogs over 20 weeks old applies to the City's Business Licensing Centre (735 Industrial Ave., or online) for an in-home breeding kennel licence. The applicant must be at least 18, the premises must meet zoning, building and property standards, no more than ten dogs over 20 weeks may be kept for breeding, showing or other purposes (not counting up to three retired, sterilized breeding dogs, and the cap does not apply where the dogs are housed mainly in an accessory building), the applicant must have no convictions or outstanding orders under the PAWS Act, must follow the Canadian Veterinary Medical Association's Code of Practice for Canadian Kennel Operations, and must license each dog and identify it with a municipal tag, microchip or tattoo by 10 weeks of age (Licensing By-law No. 2002-189, Schedule 32, s. 3). The City's kennel licence page also lists proof of $2 million commercial general liability insurance and notes that requirements vary by category. Under Ottawa's new Licensing By-law, effective January 1, 2027, new kennel licence applications will also need confirmation of site plan approval. Toronto has no breeder or kennel licence.

There is no provincial breeder licence and so no provincial fee. Ottawa's in-home breeding kennel licence costs about $93 a year and expires each April 30, according to the City's kennel licence page, and new and renewing in-home breeding kennel applicants are exempt from the City's licensing processing fee (Licensing By-law No. 2002-189, Schedule 32, s. 1). Toronto does not license breeders or kennels.

The PAWS Act is enforced by Animal Welfare Services (AWS) in the Ministry of the Solicitor General, whose provincial animal welfare inspectors work under a Chief Animal Welfare Inspector; police officers and First Nation Officers can exercise many of the same powers (s. 60). An inspector may enter and inspect any place without a warrant to check compliance with the puppy mill prohibitions (ss. 23.2 and 23.3) and, where animals are kept for a commercial purpose, with the standards of care (s. 24). Warrantless entry is allowed only between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. on a business day or when the place is open to the public (s. 25), and a dwelling can be entered only with the occupier's consent or a warrant (s. 24). During an inspection the inspector can examine animals and things, take samples and photographs, require the production of documents and data, and ask questions (s. 25). An inspector who believes an animal is in distress can order the owner to relieve it, including veterinary treatment at the owner's expense (s. 30), and can remove animals in set circumstances (s. 31); the owner can be billed for the costs (s. 35). Orders, removals and statements of account can be appealed to the Animal Care Review Board within 10 business days. Concerns are reported to the Ontario Animal Protection Call Centre at 1-833-9-ANIMAL (264625). Because there is no provincial breeder licence, there are no routine licensing inspections of breeders. In Ottawa, a pet shop licence is issued only after a PAWS animal welfare inspector reports in writing that the premises and animals meet the act (Licensing By-law No. 2002-189, Schedule 29, s. 3).

Ontario has no record-keeping requirement in force for dog breeders. The PUPS Act added a power to require prescribed persons to keep prescribed records about dogs (PAWS Act, s. 14.1), but that section has not been proclaimed in force and no regulation has been made under it; the record rules in O. Reg. 444/19 apply only to marine mammals. Inspectors can still require a breeder to produce any document or data relevant to an inspection or inquiry (ss. 25 and 27). In Ottawa, in-home breeding kennel licensees must keep records of the number of dogs kept and the gender and birth date of each, and make them available to the City on request (Licensing By-law No. 2002-189, Schedule 32, s. 9). Toronto pet shops that sell a dog must give the buyer a receipt naming the seller and buyer and describing the dog's breed, sex, age and markings, together with an up-to-date veterinary certificate of health (Toronto Municipal Code Chapter 545, s. 545-255).

The PAWS Act has two tiers of offences. Breaching the standards of care (s. 13) or exposing an animal to an undue risk of distress (s. 15(3)) is a lesser offence: an individual faces a fine of up to $75,000, up to six months in jail, or both for a first offence, and up to $100,000 and one year for a later offence; a corporation faces up to $100,000, then $250,000 (s. 49(1), (3) and (5)). Causing or permitting distress, and operating or supporting a puppy mill (ss. 23.2 and 23.3), are major offences: up to $130,000, two years in jail, or both for an individual's first offence and up to $260,000 and two years for a later one; up to $500,000 and then $1,000,000 for a corporation (s. 49(2), (4) and (6)). Operating a puppy mill carries a minimum fine of $10,000, rising to $25,000 if the conduct resulted in the death or euthanasia of a dog, and each failing listed in s. 23.2(2) counts as a separate offence (ss. 23.2(3) and 49(7.1) and (7.2)); supporting a puppy mill carries a $10,000 minimum (s. 49(7.3)). Causing or permitting a dog to be in distress, or knowingly or recklessly exposing a dog to an undue risk of distress, carries a $25,000 minimum when it happens because the person keeps dogs for breeding or sale, or at premises where they do (s. 49(7)). Directors and officers who take part in a corporation's offence are liable as individuals (s. 49(8)), and on conviction a court can order restitution and can bar the person from owning, having custody of or living with animals for any period, including for life (s. 49(9) and (10)). Criminal Code animal cruelty charges are also possible. Breeding a pit bull is an offence under the Dog Owners' Liability Act, with a fine of up to $10,000, six months in jail, or both for an individual and up to $60,000 for a corporation (s. 18).