Sacramento County, CA Animal Ordinances: Cat Rules (2026)

Sacramento County's Title 8 animal ordinance applies licensing, rabies-vaccination, and sterilization requirements to cats in unincorporated areas. Every cat over four months of age must be licensed annually, and no license is issued unless the cat has a rabies vaccination valid for at least the 12-month licensing period; an owner whose cat over four months lacks a current rabies certificate is in violation. The County also imposes mandatory sterilization: no owner may possess or harbor a cat over four months of age that has not been sterilized unless the owner holds an unaltered (intact) license or qualifies for an exemption under the code's exemption provisions. Exemptions include cats certified in writing by a licensed veterinarian as unsuitable for sterilization for health or age reasons (assessed the altered-license fee). An intact-animal permit (reported at $150) is required to keep an unaltered cat for breeding. License fees are reduced — to one-half or less of the intact fee — upon a veterinarian's written certification that the cat has been sterilized. The pet limit of four mature cats (six months or older) per premises applies, with more requiring a cattery use permit. The same rules apply to indoor and outdoor cats alike.