Apple Valley, CA Animal Ordinances: Breed Restrictions (2026)
Key Facts
- State basis
- Food & Agricultural Code § 31683
- Breed-specific rules
- None; declarations are behavior-based
- Declaration process
- Noticed hearing before Town Manager
- Vicious-dog insurance
- Up to $100,000 liability coverage required
- Potentially-dangerous fine
- Up to $500 per violation
- Vicious-dog fine
- Up to $1,000 per violation
- Delisting window
- 36 months with no new incident
Summary
Apple Valley has no ordinance that targets pit bulls or any other breed; state Food and Agricultural Code Section 31683 bars cities from regulating dogs by breed. Instead, Chapter 15.03 of the Municipal Code lets the Town declare an individual dog "potentially dangerous" or "vicious" after a hearing, based on that dog's own bite or attack history.
It is the purpose and intent of this Chapter to establish the Town's own program, including procedures for the control of potentially dangerous or vicious dogs or animals, as recognized by Food and Agricultural Code division 14, chapter 9, § 31683 (entitled "Potentially Dangerous and Vicious Dogs"). Attacks by potentially dangerous or vicious dogs or animals on human beings and domestic animals are attributable to the failure of owners to register, confine and properly control vicious potentially or dangerous dogs. Potentially dangerous or vicious dogs or animals are hereby declared a public nuisance.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 19 Update 1).
Full Breakdown
03, Potentially Dangerous or Vicious or Public Nuisance Animal Hearings, explicitly builds the Town's dangerous-dog program on Food and Agricultural Code Section 31683, the state law governing vicious and potentially dangerous dogs. 020(A) if, unprovoked, it required a defensive action twice in 36 months, bit a person once, injured another domestic animal twice off its owner's property in 36 months, shows a known unprovoked propensity to attack, or was found unrestrained off its owner's property on three occasions in 12 months. 5 conviction, one that unprovoked inflicts "severe injury," meaning muscle tears, disfiguring lacerations, or injuries needing multiple sutures or surgery, or kills a person, or a previously "potentially dangerous" dog that reoffends. 040. 100. 140. 160 sets penalties at up to $500 for a potentially-dangerous-dog violation and up to $1,000 for a vicious-dog violation.
Violations & Fines
Failing to comply with a Chapter 15.03 order, such as keeping an unlicensed, unvaccinated, unfenced or unmuzzled dog after a "potentially dangerous" or "vicious" declaration, is a separate violation. Fines run up to $500 for a potentially-dangerous-dog violation and up to $1,000 for a vicious-dog violation under Section 15.03.160, and the Town can seize, impound or, after a hearing, order the dog destroyed.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Apple Valley ban pit bulls or other specific dog breeds?
What can trigger a "potentially dangerous dog" declaration in Apple Valley?
What happens if my dog is declared vicious?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Apple Valley
How Apple Valley compares: Cities with No Dog Breed Restrictions·California rules heatmap·Compare Apple Valley to another location·View the California animal ordinances overview
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Breed Restrictions in Nearby Cities
How other cities in San Bernardino County handle breed restrictions.