Cupertino has no cat leash or licensing mandate; cats count within the household-pet limit and must not create a nuisance, with sheltering and stray response handled by San Jose Animal Care and Services.
Cupertino does not require cats to be leashed or licensed. Cats are treated as household pets and count toward the CMC 19.28.030(H) limit of four adult household pets per R1 site, of which no more than two may be adult dogs or cats. Owners must avoid creating nuisances; the City's animal-nuisance provision reaches any animal that by sound or cry habitually disturbs neighbors. Injured stray cats can be reported to San Jose Animal Care and Services, which provides field services and sheltering for Cupertino by contract, at 408-794-7297. California law encourages spaying and neutering, and San Jose Animal Care and Services offers licensing and spay/neuter resources that Cupertino residents may use, though cat licensing is not compelled.
There is no cat-specific penalty for being at large, but a cat causing a documented nuisance can be subject to the City's nuisance abatement process, and abandoning animals violates state cruelty law.
Other ordinances people look up for this city. Green dot = verified primary-source excerpt.
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Under California's SB 1383, Cupertino residents and businesses must keep food scraps and yard trimmings out of the trash and use Recology South Bay's organic...
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Artificial turf is not counted as drought-tolerant landscaping in California, and under SB 676 (Government Code 53087.7) cities like Cupertino may regulate s...
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Cupertino's Water-Efficient Landscape Ordinance (Municipal Code Chapter 14.15) implements California's MWELO and caps turf at 25% of landscape area, favoring...
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Cupertino places no ban on residential rainwater harvesting and actively encourages on-site rainwater and graywater capture in its Water-Efficient Landscape ...
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Cupertino has permanent water-waste prohibitions under Municipal Code Chapter 15.32, banning runoff, hosing pavement, and un-nozzled hoses. Water is supplied...
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Cupertino declares overgrown weeds and dry brush a fire nuisance under Municipal Code Chapter 9.08, enforced through a Santa Clara County weed abatement prog...
Side-by-side rule comparisons with other cities in Santa Clara County.
See how Cupertino's cat rules rules stack up against other locations.
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