Santa Barbara County, CA Animal Ordinances: Breed Restrictions (2026)

Chapter 7, Article VIII of the Santa Barbara County Code governs dangerous dogs in unincorporated areas. Section 7-54 defines a "restricted dog" as one that, when unprovoked, engages in behavior requiring defensive action to prevent injury, bites a person off the owner's property, or injures a domestic animal or livestock off the owner's property. A "vicious dog" is one trained for illegal fighting, that inflicts severe injury on or kills a person, that kills or severely injures a contained or leashed animal, or that repeats restricted-dog behavior.

These definitions are entirely breed-neutral, the ordinance contains no list of prohibited breeds. This approach tracks California Food & Agricultural Code Section 31683, which authorizes counties to regulate potentially dangerous and vicious dogs but bars breed-specific provisions that declare a dog dangerous solely by breed. After an administrative hearing under Section 7-57, a hearing officer may order conditions for a restricted dog under Section 7-60, including fencing or enclosure requirements, muzzling in public, spay/neuter, microchipping, liability insurance, and training. A vicious dog may be euthanized or, under conditions, removed to a sanctuary, and the owner may be barred from owning dogs for up to three years (Section 7-59).