Mission Viejo, CA Animal Ordinances: Breed Restrictions (2026)

The city's dangerous-dog scheme in Sec. 263 is behavior-based, not breed-based. Under the definitions in Sec. 010, a dog becomes 'potentially dangerous' after two unprovoked incidents within 36 months requiring a defensive action, an unprovoked bite causing less-than-severe injury, or an unprovoked attack on livestock or another domestic animal. A dog is 'vicious' if it has caused death or severe injury to a person, killed or seriously injured another animal off its owner's property without provocation, is kept or trained for dogfighting, or has twice within a year bitten, attacked, or chased a person in an apparent attitude of attack.

When the director has cause to believe a dog meets either definition, the director issues a written tentative declaration; the owner has five working days to request a hearing before it becomes final. Once declared, keeping the dog is a public nuisance, and the director can impose conditions including $1,000,000 in liability insurance or an equivalent bond, a specified enclosure, restraint or muzzling requirements, permanent identification, posted warning signs, and a cost-recovery fee set by council resolution, or impound and potentially destroy the dog. It is separately unlawful to possess a declared vicious or potentially dangerous dog unless it is restrained, confined or muzzled so it cannot bite or attack.

A decision may be appealed under Sec. 130. Under Sec. 070(b), a violation of Sec. 263 is a misdemeanor punishable by up to $1,000 and six months in county jail.