Over half the households in Britain own a pet. There are about 7.2 million cats, 6.5 million dogs, 1.4 million rabbits and 0.9 million hamsters. In addition to these conventional pets, some people keep unusual animals as pets. There are special laws which regulate the keeping of unusual pets.

In this section, find out what legal regulations are involved with keeping a pet. These regulations include the process of buying and selling of pets, a process which you can simplify by using one of our 'sale of a pet' documents. Below you will find a short summary of the topics covered in this section. To gain access to more information as well as any relevant documents, click on the links in the left-hand side of the page.

In law the term animals is used to refer to all animals except man. The common law historically divides animals into two groups as follows:

• Domestic animals - this includes all those animals which are tame by habit or are trained to live in association with man
• Wild animals - this includes not only the animals that are naturally savage, but also those which are more timid but cannot be classed as domestic

Domestic animals can be owned absolutely as any other piece of movable property. Domestic animals remain the property of the owner even when they have strayed or are lost. If anyone interferes with an owner's domestic animal, the owners are entitled to start proceedings against them. With these rights, come obligations as well. Owners may become liable for any wrongs their domestic animals may cause.

In this section you can find out what your responsibilities and liabilities are in keeping domestic animals, buying or selling domestic animals, and what regulations exist regarding the breeding of domestic animals.

The sale of domestic animals is subject to the ordinary laws of contract. This means that the same laws which apply to the sale of any other goods apply here. For example, if the seller carries on a business of selling animals, and the buyer has made it clear that the animal is needed for a particular purpose, the law will imply a term in the contract stating that the animal is fit for that particular purpose. However, if the seller is a private individual, no such term will be implied and the 'buyer beware' rule will apply. Therefore a buyer who is buying from a private individual, should ensure that the animal has been fully checked and further, that the seller undertakes in writing that the animal does in fact possess the particular desirable characteristics. Some animals belonging to rare or endangered species and those that are destructive, may not be possessed without a licence.

In this section, you can find out which rules are involved in the sale of a dog, horse or cat, as well as having access to documents to use when selling these type of animals.

Animals may be dangerous not only because of the diseases they can carry, but because of the direct physical injuries they can inflict. The law attempts to protect the public from such animals by prohibiting the keeping of certain animals without a licence. In other cases the animals are banned altogether.

The main legislation regarding licensing is the Dangerous Wild Animals Act 1976. Find out why this legislation was brought about, and restrictions and obligations it imposes on licence holders who keep animals which fall under the Dangerous Wild Animals Act 1976.