Aliso Viejo, CA Animal Ordinances: Cat Rules (2026)

Section 6.04.160 of the Aliso Viejo Municipal Code lets the owner of any cat obtain a license certificate and tag by submitting proof of approved rabies vaccine certified by a licensed veterinarian and paying the fee. The license is valid for the period of the approved rabies vaccine, no one can remove a registration tag from a cat without the owner's consent, and the code states plainly that obtaining the license is optional on the part of the owner. The section as printed ties the fee to the one established by the city of Mission Viejo, wording that comes from the code's own text.

Section 6.04.170 adds a household limit: anyone owning or having custody of four or more licensed dogs or four or more licensed cats over four months of age, for a noncommercial purpose, must procure an additional animal license under Article X of Chapter 6.04. Under § 6.04.020, an unsterilized female cat in heat must be strictly confined in a building or enclosure adequate to keep her in.

Commercial cat keeping is licensed separately. Section 6.04.460 requires a license for a kennel, and § 6.04.560 requires the cat kennel operator to keep all cats under proper confinement on the premises and not to let them run at large. An individual cat license under § 6.04.160 is required in addition to the kennel license when a cat is not kept exclusively in a kennel run or cage, with no individual license needed for a cat in transit or attending a cat show with a kennel representative.

Cats are also covered by several general animal rules. Section 6.04.330 defines "animal" for the running-at-large article to exclude cats and dogs, so that article's staking and grazing rule does not apply to them. The nuisance rule in § 6.04.030 and the trespass rule in § 6.04.050 apply to any animal, and § 6.04.190 sets a 10-day quarantine for suspected rabid dogs and cats. Cats are also covered by the retail sale ban in § 6.02.120.