Selling homemade dog treats in the District of Columbia: license, registration and fees (2026)

No published rule found on selling pet treats made in a home kitchen; ask DC Health. The District of Columbia has no pet food registration or license. Tonnage report: no.

Calculate your District of Columbia fees District of Columbia pet food registration

Can you make dog treats in a home kitchen in the District of Columbia?

No published rule No published rule found on selling pet treats made in a home kitchen; ask DC Health. Agency page.Source: dchealth.dc.gov · We read the agency's pet food and feed pages, its law and rules, and the state's cottage food rules, and found no statement either way on making pet treats in a home kitchen.
A DC cottage food business may not make or sell pet treats; DC's cottage food program is for food for people only.Source: dchealth.dc.gov · DC Health Cottage Food FAQs (April 2018), Q16: “Am I allowed to make and sell pet treats? ANSWER: No. Cottage food business owners are not allowed to prepare or sell food that is not intended for human consumption.”

Checked October 3, 2026 against DC Health's published pages and the District of Columbia's law. We don't judge whether any particular product or kitchen qualifies; that's for the agency, DC Health.

District of Columbia registration and license for dog treats

The District of Columbia has no pet food registration or license.

What's registered	None: The District of Columbia has no pet food or commercial feed registration or license.Source: code.dccouncil.gov · The D.C. Code has no commercial feed or pet food law. Its titles include Title 8 (Environmental and Animal Control and Protection) and Title 48 (Foods and Drugs), and neither has a feed chapter. A full-text search of the official D.C. Code (the DC Council's bulk XML, updated October 1, 2026) found no “commercial feed”, “animal feed”, “feedstuff” or animal remedy law, and no pet food law. The District's food adulteration law (D.C. Code §§ 48-101 to 48-110) covers food “for human consumption” only (§ 48-102(4)). DCMR Title 25 (Food Operations and Community Hygiene Facilities) has no feed subtitle.
Product registration fee	NoneSource: code.dccouncil.gov · No registration, so no product fee.
Package-size rule	Not applicableSource: code.dccouncil.gov
License / firm fee	NoneSource: code.dccouncil.gov · No feed or pet food license. DC Health's Animal Services license list has no pet food license.
Registration period	Not applicableSource: code.dccouncil.gov
Renewal due	Not applicableSource: code.dccouncil.gov
Form or portal	None. No registration form: the District of Columbia has no registration.Source: code.dccouncil.gov · No registration form: the District of Columbia has no registration.
License / firm form	None. No registration form: the District of Columbia has no registration.Source: code.dccouncil.gov · No registration form: the District of Columbia has no registration.
What to send	Nothing to register.Source: code.dccouncil.gov

Tonnage report

Tonnage report required?	NoSource: code.dccouncil.gov · No feed law, so no tonnage report or inspection fee.
How often	Not applicableSource: code.dccouncil.gov
Due	Not applicableSource: code.dccouncil.gov

We show who files and when, not the fee: tonnage fees depend on how much you sell. What a tonnage report is, state by state.

Steps

Ask about home kitchens first. We found no published rule on pet treats made in a home kitchen in the District of Columbia. Ask the agency, DC Health, before you start.Source: dchealth.dc.gov · We read the agency's pet food and feed pages, its law and rules, and the state's cottage food rules, and found no statement either way on making pet treats in a home kitchen.
No state registration. None: The District of Columbia has no pet food or commercial feed registration or license.Source: code.dccouncil.gov · The D.C. Code has no commercial feed or pet food law. Its titles include Title 8 (Environmental and Animal Control and Protection) and Title 48 (Foods and Drugs), and neither has a feed chapter. A full-text search of the official D.C. Code (the DC Council's bulk XML, updated October 1, 2026) found no “commercial feed”, “animal feed”, “feedstuff” or animal remedy law, and no pet food law. The District's food adulteration law (D.C. Code §§ 48-101 to 48-110) covers food “for human consumption” only (§ 48-102(4)). DCMR Title 25 (Food Operations and Community Hygiene Facilities) has no feed subtitle.
Labels. Moving to AAFCO's new label format? The Pet Nutrition Facts box generator formats the box from your own numbers. We don't review labels.
Shipping to other states? Each state you sell into has its own rules. Selling dog treats online · fee calculator.

Every District of Columbia fact, with sources: District of Columbia pet food & treat registration. Selling in several states? The free calculator adds up the fees, and the $49 Registration Pack turns them into a checklist and renewal calendar.

Other states

Nearby: Selling dog treats in Maryland · Selling dog treats in Virginia · Selling dog treats in Delaware

Home kitchen, registration and license rules in all 50 states and DC