Declaring your dog or cat breeding facility: SIREN, litter number, and mandatory procedures

In France, the line between a private individual and a breeder is much lower than one might imagine. As soon as you own a breeding female and sell at least one puppy or kitten from her, you are considered a breeder under the Rural Code — with the associated obligations, even for occasional activity.

When do you become a breeder?

The rule is simple and strict: the sale of a single puppy or kitten from your female is enough to qualify you as a breeder. There is no "one litter for fun" tolerance. Any transfer for consideration, even a single one, triggers the declaration obligation. The DDPPs (Departmental Directorates for Population Protection) have access to platform ad history and can identify repeated sales.

SIREN or litter number: which applies to you?

Two situations stand out:

• Litter number ("amateur breeder" derogation) — reserved for those who market only one litter per year per tax household, with puppies or kittens registered in a genealogical book (LOF for dogs, LOOF for cats). The litter number then replaces the SIREN in advertisements.
• SIREN number — mandatory in all other cases: more than one litter per year, unregistered puppies, or if not all animals are registered. In practice, the majority of breeding operations fall under the SIREN requirement.

Declaring your activity, step-by-step

Since 2023, the Business Formalities Centers (CFE) no longer exist: everything goes through the single window for business formalities (INPI).

• Declare the creation of the breeding operation on the formalities window. Afterwards, your breeding operation is registered in the Sirene directory and you receive your SIREN and SIRET numbers.
• Declare yourself as a breeder on the national database of dog, cat, and ferret operators (via I-CAD). You will receive an acknowledgment of receipt.
• For dogs, a declaration under the Classified Installations (ICPE) may be required depending on the size of the facility.

The declaration must be renewed in the event of a change of person in charge or a substantial modification of the housing conditions (including a change of sanitary veterinarian).

Mandatory qualifications and designations

• ACACED — the Certificate of Knowledge for Domestic Animal Species is essential for any breeder, even amateur.
• Sanitary veterinarian — to be designated via Cerfa form n°15983. They ensure the regulatory health monitoring of your facility.

Mandatory information for any sales advertisement

Every advertisement for a transfer for consideration must include, under penalty of a fine and removal by the platform:

• The species, breed or type, sex, and age of the animal;
• The animal's identification number (or the mother's if the young are not yet identified);
• The SIREN number or litter number depending on your situation;
• The number of animals in the litter;
• Whether or not it is registered in a genealogical book (advertising a pedigree without proof is a misleading commercial practice);
• The price.

Since 2022, marketplaces and classified ad sites have a legal obligation to check and remove non-compliant ads.

Identification, age of transfer, and documents

The animal must be identified before any transfer (microchip or tattoo), and the transfer cannot take place before the age of 8 weeks. You provide the buyer with: a veterinary certificate, an information document on the species, a transfer certificate, and — since the law of November 30, 2021 — a commitment and knowledge certificate signed at least 7 days before the animal's handover.

What's changing soon

An order dated June 19, 2025, changes the health regulations: transmission of health monitoring information to I-CAD from January 1, 2027, and dematerialization of the entry and exit register from January 1, 2029. Anticipate maintaining a rigorous breeding register.

Regulations evolve regularly. For up-to-date procedures and official forms, refer to Service-Public.fr and your chamber of agriculture. This article is for informational purposes and does not constitute legal advice.