Are Roof Rats Legal in Nebraska? Keeping, Breeding & Selling

Keeping / owning   Legal

Confidence: High · Last verified 2026-06-14

Neb. Rev. Stat. 37-246 defines ‘wild mammals’ but excludes by name ‘the fallow deer, the house mouse, the Norway rat, the black rat, the feral domestic dog, and the feral domestic cat.’ ‘The black rat’ is the common name for Rattus rattus. The Captive Wildlife Permit requirement at 37-477(1) reaches only ‘any wild birds, any wild mammals, any nongame wildlife in need of conservation … or any wildlife determined to be an endangered or threatened species,’ and the prohibited inherently-dangerous list at 37-477(2) is ‘any wolf, any skunk, or any member of the families Felidae and Ursidae.’ Because R. rattus is statutorily not a wild mammal, neither the permit nor the prohibited list applies, so no state permit, registration, fee, or facility inspection is required to keep one. General animal-cruelty law still applies.

Sources: Nebraska Legislature, Nebraska Legislature, Michigan State Animal Legal & Historical Center

Breeding   Legal

Confidence: High · Last verified 2026-06-14

Breeding is unregulated at the state level. Because R. rattus is excluded from ‘wild mammals’ (37-246), the captive-wildlife system (37-477) imposes no propagation permit on it. Nebraska’s commercial-breeder framework, the Commercial Dog and Cat Operator Inspection Act (Neb. Rev. Stat. 54-625 et seq.), defines ‘Commercial dog breeder,’ ‘Commercial cat breeder,’ and ‘Casual breeder’ exclusively in terms of dogs and cats, so there is no ‘commercial rodent breeder’ license category and no state rodent-breeding quota, fee, or facility standard. Hobby or large-scale rat breeding triggers no Nebraska license. Federal USDA/AWA licensing can reach a large wholesale/sight-unseen dealer, but rats of the genus Rattus bred for use as pets sold direct-to-consumer fall outside that federal layer (and research rats are excluded from the AWA entirely).

Sources: Nebraska Legislature, Nebraska Legislature, USDA APHIS

Selling or giving away   Legal with a permit

Confidence: High · Last verified 2026-06-14

Giving a roof rat away or selling a few casually (direct from a private home, no storefront) is unregulated: the ‘Dealer’ license under the Commercial Dog and Cat Operator Inspection Act is defined only for ‘buying for resale or selling or exchanging dogs or cats,’ so a person trading rodents is not a ‘dealer.’ The one attached condition is the pet shop license. Neb. Rev. Stat. 54-626 defines ‘Pet animal’ to include ‘rodents’ and defines ‘Pet shop’ as ‘a retail establishment which sells pet animals and related supplies,’ and 54-627 provides that ‘A person shall not operate as a … pet shop unless the person obtains the appropriate license,’ carrying a one-time $125 license fee, a premises inspection, and (under 23 NAC 18-007) a written veterinary-care plan. So selling roof rats through a retail establishment requires a Department of Agriculture pet shop license, while casual private sales and free gifting do not. (Roof rats are also outside the Dog and Cat Purchase Protection Act ‘lemon law,’ which covers only dogs and cats.) General cruelty law still applies.

Sources: Nebraska Legislature, Nebraska Legislature, Nebraska Dept of Agriculture / Cornell Legal Information Institute, Nebraska Legislature

Transport & import   Legal with a permit

Confidence: Medium · Last verified 2026-06-14

Intrastate movement of a lawfully held pet roof rat is entirely unregulated, and Nebraska imposes no exit permit on export (the destination jurisdiction’s rules govern). The attached condition is on IMPORT. 23 NAC 21-004.01 provides that ‘Animals must comply with all applicable requirements to enter the state. Animals entering the state which are not in compliance are subject to enforcement actions and may be quarantined at the expense of the owner … or immediately returned to the state of origin.’ Because ‘the black rat’ is excluded from ‘wild mammals’ (37-246), import is governed by the Department of Agriculture’s animal-health rules, not by a Game and Parks wildlife embargo. The Department’s published Summary of Import Requirements does not list rodents by name; a pet roof rat falls under the generic ‘Exotics (not bovid or cervidae)’ line, which requires a Certificate of Veterinary Inspection (CVI) plus a ‘Pre-Entry Import Permit number … unless using an approved eCVI.’ A CVI is generally valid for 30 days before entry. International import is governed by federal CDC/USDA/USFWS rules (the CDC bars rodents of African origin). Never release a roof rat into the wild.

Sources: Nebraska Dept of Agriculture / Cornell Legal Information Institute, Nebraska Dept of Agriculture (State Veterinarian), Nebraska Dept of Agriculture, Nebraska Legislature, USDA APHIS / CDC

• Determine whether you are operating a ‘retail establishment’ (storefront/commercial) selling pet animals; casual/private sales and free gifting are not pet shops.
• If a pet shop: submit the Pet Shop/Dealer application to the Nebraska Department of Agriculture with the one-time $125 license fee.
• Arrange a pre-licensing facility inspection by the Department.
• Establish a written veterinary-care plan with a Nebraska-licensed attending veterinarian (23 NAC 18-007) and keep escape-proof, sanitary enclosures.

Forms: Nebraska Pet Shop/Dealer License Application · Where: Nebraska Department of Agriculture, Animal Health (Commercial Dog and Cat Inspection Program). · Fees: One-time $125 license fee, plus annual fees based on the number and nature of animals harbored.

Source: Nebraska Legislature, Nebraska Legislature, Nebraska Dept of Agriculture / Cornell Legal Information Institute

• Have a USDA-accredited veterinarian in the state of origin examine the rat and issue a CVI within 30 days before entering Nebraska.
• Obtain a pre-entry import permit number from the Nebraska Department of Agriculture (or use a veterinarian on an approved eCVI system, which routes the data and can satisfy the permit step).
• Confirm with the State Veterinarian whether a single relocating pet rodent’s pre-entry permit is required or whether the CVI alone suffices, and whether any disease attestation must appear on the CVI.
• No CVI is needed for moving a lawfully held rat within Nebraska.

Forms: Certificate of Veterinary Inspection (CVI) · Where: Issued by a USDA-accredited veterinarian in the state of origin; pre-entry import permit issued by the Nebraska Department of Agriculture, Bureau of Animal Industry. · Fees: No state fee for the CVI; the issuing veterinarian charges an examination/paperwork fee.

Source: Nebraska Dept of Agriculture / Cornell Legal Information Institute, Nebraska Dept of Agriculture (State Veterinarian), Nebraska Dept of Agriculture

Source: Nebraska Dept of Agriculture, Nebraska Legislature