Animal activity licences

Animal boarding businesses (including home boarders and day carers), dog breeders, pet shops, riding establishments and people that keep or train animals for exhibitions are covered under a single type of licence - known as an animal activity licence - with nationally set licence conditions.

You will need to meet the conditions and be assessed before we can grant a licence. 

Licence conditions

The licence conditions you will need to meet for each of the animal activities covered are set out below:

•  Selling animals as pets (PDF 636KB)
•  Providing boarding for cats or dogs (PDF 140KB)
•  Hiring out horses (PDF 157KB)
•  Breeding of dogs (PDF 260KB)
•  Keeping or training animals for exhibitions (PDF 234KB)

Fees

Please see our licensing fees and charges page.

How to apply 

You can apply by downloading the form below.

•  Animal activity licence - application form (PDF 510KB)

Once we receive your completed application and payment, we will assess it, then contact you to arrange an inspection.

Guidance

To help you, guidance notes for each of the licensable activities are set out below. These contain more information on what's required to meet the conditions, a set of which will be included on the granted licence. They also provide advice on steps you can take to achieve a higher star rating.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) updated this guidance on 1 October 2023. Make sure you are using the updated information below when making your application. Licences that have recently been issued under the old guidance will remain valid until renewal.

• Selling animals as pets licensing statutory guidance
• Cat boarding licensing statutory guidance
• Dog kennel boarding licensing statutory guidance
• Home boarding for dogs licensing statutory guidance
• Dog day care licensing statutory guidance
• Hiring out horses licensing statutory guidance
• Dog breeding licensing statutory guidance
• Keeping or training animals for exhibition licensing statutory guidance

Check you have the correct permissions

You must check that you have the correct permissions to use your property or premises for the business applied for. For example:

• there may be restrictions on running businesses in domestic Council properties
• premises may need planning permission to operate this type of business. 

We will not inspect a premises until you provide proof that the correct permissions are in place. You should submit this with your application. Please note: the application fee is not refundable.

Inspections

We will inspect all premises before granting a licence. You should have the following:

• A specialist knowledge in the species that you are caring for and a clear understanding of its needs and welfare. This includes the animals' mental and physical health, feeding and knowledge of environmental enrichment. You should be able to demonstrate that you have researched and followed expert guidance to carry out your role.
• Comprehensive records that contain all the information required by the conditions of the activity.
• An understanding of risks involved in caring for the animal, including a risk assessment and written policies and procedures that are reviewed regularly. These documents should be available for inspection.
• Training procedures to make sure staff know what is expected of them, and clear evidence of good supervision of staff. Training and development of the licence holder and/or staff should be ongoing, and we would look for evidence of this at each renewal.

We will also assess the premises itself to ensure you can meet the laws relating to the physical environment in which the animals will be kept.

Star ratings

Based on the application, and the information given to us at the inspection, we will assess the risk rating and award stars using a scoring method created by DEFRA.

Low-risk premises can gain up to five stars, while premises assessed as higher risk can be awarded up to four stars. If you do not agree with our decision, you can make improvements to address highlighted issues, and ask for a re-inspection.

Premises with lower star ratings

A premises with a lower star rating is not necessarily one to avoid, as there are other factors to consider, such as the length of time the licence holder has been operating. New businesses are likely to be assessed as slightly higher risk simply because there is no history of good practice to consider.

The scoring method is set by the Government, and ratings should not be seen as a recommendation by the Council.

If customers have any concerns, please contact us before making a purchase/booking.

Animal Licensing Policy

Our Animal Licensing Policy sets out guidance on what existing licence holders and potential applicants need to consider when applying for licences, and what they can expect from us.

•  Animal Licensing Policy (PDF 493KB)

Public register

Details of businesses licensed to provide animal-related activities can be found in our public register:

•  Register of Animal Activity Licences (PDF 405KB)

Dog walking

Dog walking does not require an animal activity licence.

Contact us

Email: licensing@dacorum.gov.uk
Telephone: 01442 228470 / 228860