San Bernardino County, CA Animal Ordinances: Cat Rules (2026)

San Bernardino County does not impose a mandatory licensing or leash requirement on cats; the County Code licensing chapter (32.027-32.029) applies specifically to dogs over four months of age. Cats are, however, included in the Development Code Table 84-5 pet limits, which cap a combination of dogs and/or cats at 2 to 5 per parcel depending on lot size, with five or more constituting a private kennel/cattery subject to Section 84.04.060 and a Special Use Permit. General animal-control provisions still reach cats: County Code 32.0108 prohibits any animal from straying onto others' property without consent, and County Code 32.0119 makes it unlawful to allow any animal to habitually make noise that causes annoyance or discomfort to a neighbor (the 'reasonable person' standard, with complaints from inhabitants within 200 yards). Commercial cat-breeding catteries are regulated as catteries under County Code Title 3, Division 2, Chapter 12 and the Development Code. Statewide, cats are protected from abuse and neglect under California Penal Code 597, and abandonment is prohibited under Penal Code 597s. There is no county requirement that owned cats be confined indoors, but a cat repeatedly entering a neighbor's property may give rise to a private nuisance or trespass-of-animal claim under California Civil Code.