Minnesota Dog Breeder Licensing Requirements

Commercial dog and cat breeders in Minnesota must be licensed and inspected by the Minnesota Board of Animal Health. The state defines a commercial breeder as an operation with 10 or more adult intact dogs or cats that produce more than five litters per year and that breeds them for sale or exchange; an adult animal is one 28 weeks of age or older (Minn. Stat. 347.57, subds. 4, 5 and 7). If you have fewer than 10 adult intact animals, or your animals produce five or fewer litters a year, you do not meet the state definition of a commercial breeder, though you should still check local city and county rules. Many Minnesota cities and counties have their own kennel or multiple-pet permit rules that kick in at a much lower number of animals. For example, some cities require a kennel license when a household keeps more than four dogs or cats. Federal law may also apply: under the USDA Animal Welfare Act, breeders who keep more than four breeding females and sell dogs sight-unseen (online, by phone, by mail, to brokers, or to pet stores) generally need a federal license.

To become licensed as a commercial breeder, you submit a license application to the Minnesota Board of Animal Health along with the required license fee. You should expect to provide information about your facility and the number of adult intact animals you keep, since the fee is calculated per animal. Because inspection is part of the program, your facility must be ready to be inspected by the Board. The application must state whether you operate under more than one name or have an ownership interest in another facility, whether any breeding license you held was ever suspended, revoked, or denied, and whether you were ever convicted of animal cruelty; partnerships and corporations must list their partners, officers, or members, and nonresident applicants must consent to Minnesota jurisdiction. The Board must perform an announced prelicense inspection within 60 days of receiving your application and must inspect your facility before issuing the first license; you are not in violation while a completed application is waiting for that inspection. Once licensed, you must renew and file an annual report by July 1 each year, display the license at each facility, include your state license number in every ad for animals, and report changes in address, name, management, or ownership within ten days (Minn. Stat. 347.58, subd. 1). Contact the Board for the current forms.

Under Minn. Stat. 347.58, subd. 1(b), the annual license fee is $10 per adult intact animal, up to a maximum of $250, and a separate initial prelicense inspection fee of the same amount (also capped at $250) must be included with the first license application. This per-animal structure means a small commercial breeder pays less while larger operations hit the $250 cap. The license must be renewed every year by July 1 at the same per-animal fee. The Board may add a late renewal penalty of up to 50 percent of the license fee, may require you to reapply for an initial license if you have not renewed by August 1, and may charge a reinspection fee to confirm that a violation has been corrected (Minn. Stat. 347.58, subd. 1(i); 347.61, subd. 1(c)).

Minnesota is listed among the states that require commercial breeders to be licensed and regularly inspected. The Minnesota Board of Animal Health conducts inspections as part of the licensing program, and licensed breeders must pass these inspections to stay in compliance. Inspectors generally review care standards, animal health, and recordkeeping, and each inspection report must list every law, rule, or ordinance the facility is not complying with, the correction required, and the animal inventory on the inspection date. The Board must inspect each licensed facility at least once a year with the breeder or an agent present, and after two consecutive years with no violations it must inspect at least every two years; it must also investigate formal complaints (Minn. Stat. 347.58, subd. 2; 347.60). If a facility fails an inspection or violates conditions, it can face enforcement action, and failing to meet requirements can put a license at risk.

Licensed breeders must keep detailed records as part of the state program. Minnesota's pet dealer disclosure law requires that written records follow animals sold at retail, including the name, address, and USDA license number of the breeder and any broker, the animal's date of birth, breed, sex, color, identifying marks, identifying tag or tattoo number, the sire and dam's names and registration numbers, the litter number, and a record of inoculations, worming treatments, and medications. These records support traceability and consumer protection. Under Minn. Stat. 347.58, subd. 3, a licensed commercial breeder must keep records on each animal (where and when it was received, birth date, breed, sex, color and markings, any tag, tattoo, microchip, or collar number, worming, vaccinations and who gave them, medications, any disease a veterinarian diagnosed, and who the animal went to) and must keep those records for two years. Pet dealers must keep a copy of each buyer's statement of consumer rights for one year (Minn. Stat. 325F.791, subd. 2).

Operating a commercial breeding business without a required license, or violating the care and inspection rules, can lead to enforcement action by the Minnesota Board of Animal Health, including the risk of losing your license. Local governments can also impose their own penalties; for example, cities may issue citations and escalating fines for animal-related ordinance violations. Breeders who are subject to the USDA Animal Welfare Act and operate without a required federal license face a separate federal violation on top of state rules. Under Minn. Stat. 347.62, operating as a commercial breeder without a license, advertising animals for sale while unlicensed, and falsifying information in a license application, annual report, or record are each misdemeanors, punishable by up to 90 days in jail, a fine of up to $1,000, or both (Minn. Stat. 609.02, subd. 3), and a violation that results in animal cruelty or torture carries the pet cruelty penalties of Minn. Stat. 343.21. The Board can also issue correction orders, assess administrative penalties of up to $5,000 per correction order, issue 72-hour cease and desist orders, seek a court injunction, and suspend, revoke, or refuse to renew a license. A breeder whose license is revoked cannot reapply for two years, and a breeder whose license has been suspended or revoked twice is permanently barred (Minn. Stat. 347.61).