Every day across Texas, companion animals enter shelters that may not be subject to the same state-level minimum housing, sanitation, and inspection requirements simply because of where they live.

Under Texas Health and Safety Code Chapter 823, the state’s animal-shelter requirements apply to shelters located in counties with populations of 75,000 or more. Shelters in smaller counties are excluded from this Chapter 823 framework, even though the animals in their care have the same basic needs for clean housing, sanitation, safety, veterinary oversight, and humane treatment.

A county’s population or budget should never determine whether an animal receives basic humane care.

We recognize that rural and mid-sized counties often operate with limited resources. But limited funding should be a reason to provide additional support and a realistic path to compliance, not a reason for animals to receive fewer protections. If Texas requires these basic standards, the state should also work with smaller communities through reasonable implementation periods, resources, and technical assistance to help them meet them.

Current law also requires covered shelters to undergo an annual veterinary inspection, but the veterinarian is employed by the shelter itself. We believe meaningful accountability requires greater independence. Annual inspections should be conducted by qualified veterinarians who are independent of the facility and accountable to an external state body such as DSHS.

We are asking the Texas Legislature to pass the Animal Shelter Accountability Act to:

• Lower the Chapter 823 population threshold from 75,000 to 20,000, extending the existing minimum shelter standards and veterinary oversight to rural and mid-sized counties.
• Require independent annual veterinary inspections conducted by veterinarians who are not selected and paid directly by the shelter being inspected.
• Establish a realistic implementation and support structure so smaller counties have the resources and guidance necessary to meet these standards.

This is not about punishing rural counties or assuming every small shelter is poorly operated. It is about establishing a basic floor of humane care and accountability for animals across Texas.

Basic humane care should not be a privilege of population size or county wealth.

Texas animals and Texas communities deserve transparency, humane standards, and meaningful independent accountability.

Sign the petition and help us ask the Texas Legislature to close this gap in protection for rural and mid-sized Texas communities.