You Can Legally Own a Certain Number of Dogs in Texas with Some Cities Being More Strict

Having pets in general is a great thing. Pets give us a moment of joy, a sense of responsibility, a daily laugh and unconditional love. There are many people who would much rather have a pet than interact with any human being. Most households can usually handle and properly take care of two pets. But is there a limit to how many pets you can have in your family? The short answer is yes. Let's take a look at what the State of Texas has to say along with the city of Tyler and Longview, Texas.

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Number of Dogs Per Household

Every state has its own laws and regulations to owning a pet. For instance in California, you can own up to four dogs but you need to obtain a kennel permit to own any more. In Iowa, you can own six dogs or six cats or a combination of both that equals that number. Louisiana has a 12 dog limit per household while Minnesota requires a multiple animal permit to own more than four dogs. For Texas, the legal limit for dog ownership is four. No permits to own more or other exceptions to the law, the limit is four per household.

Tyler and Longview Pet Laws

While there are state laws regarding pet ownership, individual cities can enact their own ordinances or laws around pets. In Tyler, just like across the state, you can have no more than four dogs or cats in your household. You also cannot have chickens or other fowl unless you're in a specifically zoned area inside the city limits (cityoftyler.org). In Longview, the pet laws are very similar (longviewtexas.gov).

Weird Pet Laws in Other Texas Cities

While Tyler and Longview's pet laws are pretty straight forward, some Texas cities have some weird laws on the books (texascapital.org). For instance:

• El Paso - Illegal for donkeys to sleep in a bathtub.
• Austin - Illegal to carrying an Armadillo across state line.
• Houston - Illegal to own horses in a residential area.
• Corpus Christi - Illegal to let your dogs run loose on the beach.
• Austin, Dallas and San Antonio - Illegal to have a skunk as a pet.

So unfortunately, as much as we would love to own all of the animals and get all the snuggles, we can only do it up to a certain point by state or city laws.