Microchips for Dogs and Cats in Las Vegas

If you live in the City of Las Vegas, you must microchip your dog or cat once they turn four months old. Otherwise, you face misdemeanor penalties of up to six months in jail and/or $1,000 in fines.

This is a new law that takes effect on August 1, 2024. Below our Las Vegas criminal defense attorneys answer these frequently-asked-questions:

• 1. Do pets need microchips in Las Vegas?
• 2. Does this law apply to me?
• 3. What if the pet gets a new owner?
• 4. Are there exceptions to the new law?
• 5. What if I am a breeder?
• 6. How do I get a microchip?
• 7. What if I do not microchip my dog or cat?
• 8. What are the defenses?
• 9. Full Text of the Microchipping Ordinance
• 10. Additional Resources

1. Do pets need microchips in Las Vegas?

Starting on August 1, 2024, dogs and cats at least four months old are required to have a microchip if they live in the City of Las Vegas.¹

2. Does this law apply to me?

Your dog or cat needs a microchip if they are at least four months old and live in within the municipal city limits of Las Vegas. If you are unsure whether you live in the city of Las Vegas, check here.²

3. What if the pet gets a new owner?

When a dog or cat changes ownership, the owner must update the microchip information within 30 days.³

4. Are there exceptions to the new law?

Yes. Your dog or cat does not need a microchip in Las Vegas if either:

• You have resided in the city for fewer than 30 days, or
• The dog or cat was transported into the city temporarily for an exhibition or a show.⁴

5. What if I am a breeder?

The new microchip law applies to breeders as well. If breeders offer to sell any dogs or cats, the animals must be microchipped prior to being:

• sold or
• transported to a pet store.⁵

6. How do I get a microchip?

Contact your vet to install the microchip or go to one of Nevada SPCA’s free microchipping events. Las Vegas’s The Animal Foundation also offers microchipping for $35 an animal.

Microchipping is a routine procedure involving a hypodermic needle and no anesthesia.

You must then register your contact information and microchip number with both the:

• microchip registration business and
• Las Vegas Animal Protection Services (for more information call them at 702-229-6444 or go to the pet licensing program website).⁶

7. What if I do not microchip my dog or cat?

Failing to microchip your dog or cat in the city of Las Vegas is a misdemeanor. The penalties include:

• Up to 6 months in jail and/or
• Up to $1,000 in fines.⁷

8. What are the defenses?

Four solid defenses to charges of failing to microchip your pet include:

1. You do not live within the city limits of Las Vegas,
2. You have been living in Las Vegas for fewer than 30 days,
3. Your cat or dog is younger than four months, or
4. Your pet is in town for only a show or exhibition.⁸

Two potential defenses may be:

• It would be fatal or seriously dangerous for your pet to have a microchip, or
• The microchip was somehow expelled from your pet’s body, and you had no idea.

9. Full Text of the Microchipping Ordinance

THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF LAS VEGAS DOES HEREBY ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS:

SECTION 1: Title 7 of the Municipal Code of the City of Las Vegas, Nevada, 1983 Edition, is hereby amended by adding thereto a new chapter, designated as Chapter 7.15 and consisting of Sections 7.15.010 and 7.15.020, reading as follows:

7.15.010: (A) Except as otherwise provided in this Section, it is unlawful for any person to own or harbor a dog or cat over the age of four months unless the animal has been implanted with microchip identification in accordance with this Section and this Title. For purposes of this Section, a dog or cat to be offered for sale by a pet shop or breeder is deemed to be owned or harbored by that pet shop or breeder. The age-based requirements of this Subsection (A) do not affect the applicability of the microchipping requirements of LVMC 7.42.050.

(B) The owner of a dog or cat that has been implanted with microchip identification shall register the microchip number and the owner’s contact information with a microchip registration company, as well as with the Animal Regulation Officer.

(C) When the contact information of the owner of a microchipped dog or cat changes, the owner shall provide the new contact information to the applicable microchip registration company and to the Animal Regulation Officer no later than thirty days after the change in contact information occurs.

(D) When there is a transfer of ownership of a dog or cat that has been implanted with microchip identification:

(1) The transferring owner must inform the new owner of the microchip registration company with which the dog’s or cat’s microchip is registered; and

(2) The new owner must provide the microchip registration company and the Animal Regulation Officer with the new owner’s contact information no later than thirty days after the transfer of ownership occurs.

(E) The microchipping requirements of this Section do not apply to:

(1) An animal whose owner has resided within the City fewer than thirty days; or

(2) An animal brought into the City temporarily and exclusively for the purpose of entering the animal in a show or exhibition, where the animal is not allowed to run at large.

(F) A misdemeanor complaint or citation for a violation of Subsection (A) of this Section shall be dismissed upon proof that the animal regarding which the violation occurred was implanted with microchip identification within thirty days after the complaint or citation was served.

(G) This Section shall become effective August 1, 2024.

7.15.020: The City is authorized to establish one or more programs to encourage and facilitate the microchipping of animals, including compliance with the microchipping requirements of this Chapter and Title.

SECTION 2: Title 7, Chapter 4, of the Municipal Code of the City of Las Vegas, Nevada, 1983 Edition, is hereby amended by adding thereto a new section, designated as Section 315, reading as follows:

7.04.315: “Microchipping” and other forms of the word shall be deemed to refer to the subcutaneous implantation of an electronic identification microchip into an animal where:

(A) The manufacturer of the microchip has been approved by the Animal Regulation Officer;

(B) The implantation conforms to procedures recommended by the manufacturer;

(C) The microchip is associated with a registration that includes the animal’s date of birth, the breeder’s name and address, and the breeder’s USDA license number; and

(D) The microchipping and registration information are provided to the Animal Regulation Officer.

SECTION 3: Title 7, Chapter 8, of the Municipal Code of the City of Las Vegas, Nevada, 1983 Edition, is hereby amended by adding thereto a new section, designated as Section 20, reading as follows:

7.08.020: Every person applying for a dog or cat license must provide evidence that the animal has been implanted with a microchip in accordance with this Title.

SECTION 4: Title 7, Chapter 4, of the Municipal Code of the City of Las Vegas, Nevada, 1983 Edition, is hereby amended by adding thereto a new section, designated as Section 437, reading as follows:

7.04.437: “USDA” means the United States Department of Agriculture.

SECTION 5: Title 7, Chapter 20, Section 105, of the Municipal Code of the City of Las Vegas, Nevada, 1983 Edition, is hereby repealed in its entirety.

SECTION 6: Title 7, Chapter 42, Section 10, of the Municipal Code of the City of Las Vegas, Nevada, 1983 Edition, is hereby amended to read as follows:

7.42.010: For purposes of this Chapter:

“Animal care facility” means the Animal Protection Services Center or any other facility:

(A) That is operated by, or under contract with and on behalf of, any unit of state or local government; and

(B) Whose mission and practice consists, in whole or significant part, of the rescue and placement of animals in permanent homes.

“Animal Welfare Act and regulations” means the animal welfare provisions of 7 U.S.C. Section 2131 et seq. and the corresponding federal animal welfare regulations located in 9 C.F.R. Chapter I, Subchapter A.

“Broker” means any person in the business of selling dogs or cats to pet shops, whether or not the broker is also the breeder of the dogs or cats sold to pet shops.

“Distributor” means a person who acts as the agent or contractor of a pet shop to obtain and transport dogs, cats or a combination thereof to a pet shop for purposes of sale.

[“Microchipping” and other forms of the word shall be deemed to include both the subcutaneous insertion of a registered microchip into a dog or cat and a registration that includes the animal’s date of birth, the breeder’s name and address, and the breeder’s USDA license number.]

“Nonprofit animal rescue organization” means any nonprofit organization which has tax-exempt status under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and whose mission and practice consists, in whole or significant part, of the rescue and placement of animals in permanent homes.

[“USDA” means the United States Department of Agriculture.]

“USDA license number” means the license number issued to a breeder or broker by the USDA pursuant to the Animal Welfare Act and regulations.

SECTION 7: Title 7, Chapter 42, Section 50, of the Municipal Code of the City of Las Vegas, Nevada, 1983 Edition, is hereby amended to read as follows;

7.42.050: (A) Each breeder, pet shop and distributor shall comply with applicable provisions of NRS Chapter 574 and the Animal Welfare Act and regulations.

(B) Each breeder and distributor shall ensure that all dogs and cats that are to be offered for sale at a pet shop have been microchipped before being transported to the pet shop.

(C) No pet shop shall accept delivery of any dog or cat that it proposes to sell unless the pet shop ensures that the animal has been microchipped.

(D) No breeder or pet shop shall sell or offer for sale any dog or cat unless it has been microchipped.

SECTION 8: If any section, subsection, subdivision, paragraph, sentence, clause or phrase in this ordinance or any part thereof is for any reason held to be unconstitutional or invalid or ineffective by any court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity or effectiveness of the remaining portions of this ordinance or any part thereof. The City Council of the City of Las Vegas hereby declares that it would have passed each section, subsection, subdivision, paragraph, sentence, clause or phrase thereof irrespective of the fact that any one or more sections, subsections, subdivisions, paragraphs, sentences, clauses or phrases be declared unconstitutional, invalid or ineffective.

SECTION 9: Whenever in this ordinance any act is prohibited or is made or declared to be unlawful or an offense or a misdemeanor, or whenever in this ordinance the doing of any act is required or the failure to do any act is made or declared to be unlawful or an offense or a misdemeanor, the doing of such prohibited act or the failure to do any such required act shall constitute a misdemeanor and upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine of not more than $1,000.00 or by imprisonment for a term of not more than six months, or by any combination of such fine and imprisonment. Any day of any violation of this ordinance shall constitute a separate offense.

SECTION 10: All ordinances or parts of ordinances or sections, subsections, phrases, sentences, clauses or paragraphs contained in the Municipal Code of the City of Las Vegas, Nevada, 1983 Edition, in conflict herewith are hereby repealed.

10. Additional Resources

For more information, refer to the following:

• Microchipping Ordinance – Summary of law by the City of Las Vegas.
• Proposed Provisions Generally Requiring the Microchipping of Dogs and Cats – Text of legislation by the City of Las Vegas.
• Animal Protection Services – Department in Las Vegas helping residents be compliant with ordinances.
• The Animal Foundation – Non-profit animal shelter in Nevada.
• Nevada SPCA – Southern Nevada’s non-profit original no-kill animal shelter.

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Legal References