Butte County, CA Animal Ordinances: Breed Restrictions (2026)

California state law sets the floor for how local governments may regulate dangerous and vicious dogs and forbids breed-specific designations. Food and Agricultural Code § 31683 states: 'Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to prevent a city or county from adopting or enforcing its own program for the control of potentially dangerous or vicious dogs that may incorporate all, part, or none of this chapter, or that may punish a violation of this chapter as a misdemeanor or may impose a more restrictive program to control potentially dangerous or vicious dogs. Except as provided in Section 122331 of the Health and Safety Code, no program regulating any dog shall be specific as to breed.' Health and Safety Code § 122331 carves out a narrow exception under which a city or county may enact breed-specific mandatory spay/neuter and breeding requirements, but expressly forbids those ordinances from declaring any specific breed or mixed breed to be potentially dangerous or vicious. Butte County has not enacted a breed-specific potentially-dangerous-dog ordinance and instead enforces the generally applicable Chapter 4 dog-control rules (licensing, leash, dogs-at-large, barking) and California's potentially-dangerous / vicious-dog designation framework in Food and Agricultural Code §§ 31602–31683 and California Civil Code § 3342 (strict liability of the owner for dog bites in a public place or while lawfully in a private place).