Bishop, CA Animal Ordinances: Animal Hoarding (2026)

Inyo County does not use a fixed animal-count threshold to define hoarding; instead it relies on care, sanitation, and nuisance standards enforced by Inyo County Animal Services (part of the Sheriff's Office). Under Inyo County Code Chapter 8.20, it is unlawful for the owner of any dog to fail to provide the dog proper and adequate food, water, shelter and care, or to abandon any dog anywhere in the county. The zoning code's animal-maintenance provision, Inyo County Code section 18.78.310, prohibits keeping animals in unsanitary conditions and in a manner that creates a public nuisance, and the County adopted amendments specifically because animal complaints had stemmed from hoarding, unclean and unsanitary conditions, incessant barking, flies and rodents, and odors. The animal control officer and deputies are designated public officers charged with enforcing the animal regulations and are authorized to issue citations for violations; they may also impound animals kept in violation. Where conditions amount to cruelty or neglect, California Penal Code section 597 and related state cruelty statutes provide additional criminal enforcement. Anyone aware of a possible hoarding or neglect situation can report it to Inyo County Animal Services or the Sheriff's Office for investigation.