Texas — rabies vaccination compulsory for dogs and cats (Health & Safety Code Chapter 826)

Texas — rabies vaccination compulsory for dogs and cats (Health & Safety Code Chapter 826)

Source: Texas Statutes — Health and Safety Code Chapter 826 (Rabies), statutes.capitol.texas.gov, extracted 2026-07-23. First-hand Texas statute text; C1 substring-verified against pdf-raw/mandatory-vaccination/tx_hsc_826_rabies.txt. This is the state statutory mandate to vaccinate (the LAW), distinct from clinical vaccine-guidance topics and from local leash/licensing ordinances.

Texas makes rabies vaccination compulsory by statute for dogs and cats. Chapter 826 sits under "TITLE 10. HEALTH AND SAFETY OF ANIMALS" and is cited by its short title as "the Rabies Control Act of 1981." The core mandate is in Sec. 826.021: "Except as otherwise provided by department rule, the owner of a dog or cat shall have the animal vaccinated against rabies by the time the animal is four months of age and at regular intervals thereafter as prescribed by department rule." Failure or refusal is an offense: Sec. 826.022 provides that "A person commits an offense if the person fails or refuses to have each dog or cat owned by the person vaccinated against rabies."

This covers the state-level "is rabies vaccination legally required?" question for Texas at the statute level; it applies to dogs and cats and is administered through department rules and local rabies-control authorities. Local counties and municipalities may adopt ordinances setting standards equal to or more stringent than the chapter (Sec. 826.014–826.015). It is not a substitute for local licensing/leash ordinances or clinical booster guidance (a separate clinical topic).

Verbatim C1 claims (each a substring of the source file + this body):

1. "CHAPTER 826. RABIES"
2. "TITLE 10. HEALTH AND SAFETY OF ANIMALS"
3. "This chapter may be cited as the Rabies Control Act of 1981."
4. "Sec. 826.021. VACCINATION OF DOGS AND CATS REQUIRED."
5. "Except as otherwise provided by department rule, the owner of a dog or cat shall have the animal vaccinated against rabies by the time the animal is four months of age and at regular intervals thereafter as prescribed by department rule."
6. "A person commits an offense if the person fails or refuses to have each dog or cat owned by the person vaccinated against rabies"