How to start a pet sitting business in Texas (2026)

1Pet sitting demand in Texas

About 58% of Texas households own at least one pet. Texas has four big airport hubs (DFW, Houston Bush, Austin-Bergstrom and San Antonio) and a lot of residents who fly for work, so recurring business-travel clients are common. Military families at Joint Base San Antonio, Fort Bliss in El Paso and the large Army post at Killeen need longer sits during deployments and training. School calendars drive the rest: spring break in March, summer trips once school lets out, and the Thanksgiving weekend, when many Texans drive to family.

The biggest markets: Houston, Dallas–Fort Worth, Austin, San Antonio.

2Can you board pets at home in Texas?

Sitting in the client's home needs no special permit in Texas. For boarding at your own home, there is no state boarding license; the state licensing that exists is aimed at dog and cat breeders, and kennel rules come from cities and counties. City pet limits can still cap what you host. Dallas limits dogs and cats per household by housing type (four in an apartment or duplex, six in a single-family home on under half an acre, eight on a larger lot), and San Antonio caps a residence at five dogs or eight animals total unless you hold an excess animal permit. Houston has no zoning code, but the city helps enforce deed restrictions, and suburban HOAs often ban boarding. Ask your city's animal services office how boarded pets count before you advertise.

3Set up your business in Texas

• File an LLC. $300 one-time filing with the Texas Secretary of State (Form 205). It separates your personal assets from the business, which matters when you hold clients' keys.
• Recurring entity cost: $0, no recurring filing fee, but every year by May 15 you must file a Public Information Report with the Texas Comptroller (free).
• Get an EIN from the IRS. It is free and takes about 10 minutes online.
• City or county business license: typically $25-100/year. Check your city's revenue or business services site.

Texas-specific: Texas franchise tax: at or below $2.65M in annual revenue (2026 and 2027 reports) you owe no franchise tax, and the old No Tax Due Report is gone. You still must file the Public Information Report every year by May 15. Skip it and your LLC can lose its right to do business in Texas, and you can become personally liable for some of its debts.

4Taxes for Texas pet sitters

Sales tax: Texas does not tax dog walking, drop-in visits, or pet sitting, and Comptroller letter rulings treat pet boarding and training as nontaxable too. Dog grooming is different: the Comptroller lists it as a taxable service, so if you groom (or charge separately for a bath or trim during a stay), you need a free Texas sales tax permit and must collect 6.25% state tax plus up to 2% local. Selling leashes, treats, or other products is taxable too. Check with a local accountant before you set up your pricing.

State income tax: None, a real take-home advantage.

Other taxes worth knowing: No state income tax, so meaningfully more take-home than CA/NY at the same gross.

Official source: Texas Comptroller, Taxable Services (Pub. 96-259) →

5Insurance and bonding in Texas

A Texas sitter policy should pair general liability with care, custody and control coverage for the pets you look after, plus key or lockout coverage and an optional janitorial-style bond. Weather is the Texas-specific risk. The February 2021 winter storm left millions without power, and in summer a failed air conditioner can turn dangerous for pets within hours. Put a plan for outages, flooding and extreme heat in your contract, including permission to move pets to your home or a vet.

• General liability with care, custody and control covers harm to the pets in your care and damage in the client's home.
• Key and lockout coverage pays to rekey a home if you lose a client's key.
• A bond covers theft claims and is a cheap way to reassure new clients.

Workers' comp once you hire: Workers' comp is optional for most private employers in Texas. Sole proprietors and operations using true 1099 contractors are not required to carry it. If you have employees and skip it, you must file DWC Form-005 with the state every year between February 1 and April 30 and tell your employees in writing, and an injured employee can sue you directly. Most multi-sitter shops still buy a policy for the protection. Texas Department of Insurance, Workers' Comp →

6What to charge in Texas

Typical Texas bands for 2026:

• Drop-in visit (30 min): $22 to $35
• Overnight in the client's home: $65 to $95 per night
• Additional pet: +$5-10 per visit

Overnights and peak dates: Texas overnights usually run about $65 to $95 a night, higher in Austin and in close-in Dallas and Houston neighborhoods. Peak dates are spring break in March, the stretch from Thanksgiving through New Year, and summer weekends. Holiday weeks fill early, so publish your holiday rates and a booking deadline by early fall.

Check your numbers with the pet sitter rates calculator and the holiday rate calculator.

7Hiring sitters in Texas

Texas follows the IRS common-law test (not the strict ABC test like California). 1099 contractor classification is more defensible here, especially when sitters set their own schedules and use their own equipment. That said, the IRS still wins reclassification cases, so set up the relationship correctly from day one.

Texas classification problems usually surface when a former sitter files for unemployment with the Texas Workforce Commission, or through an IRS audit. Misclassifying a sitter who later gets hurt walking your client's dog can leave you personally liable for medical bills, so most Texas multi-sitter shops still buy workers' comp voluntarily for this reason.

8FAQ