Elko County, NV Animal Ordinances: Cat Rules (2026)

Section 7-2-5(B) of the Elko County Code is the core cat rule. All dogs or cats harbored or maintained within Elko County who are four months of age or older must be inoculated by a veterinarian with an anti-rabies vaccine approved by the state department of agriculture. Every cat must be reinoculated at not more than twenty four month intervals if given modified live vaccine, or at not more than twelve month intervals if given killed vaccine. It is unlawful for the owner or custodian to keep, maintain or allow a cat to remain in the county unless it has been vaccinated by a veterinarian. Chapter 3 of Title 7 backs this up: Section 7-3-1 names the Elko County Sheriff's Department as the Rabies Control Authority, lets it cite the owner of an unvaccinated dog, cat or ferret, and accepts only a certificate of vaccination issued under Section 7-3-7 as proof. Under Section 7-3-4, a cat that bites a person is quarantined and observed for ten days.

The annual license in Section 7-2-4 applies to dogs over six months, so cats carry no county license tag. Breeding and boarding are permitted businesses. Section 7-2-27 makes it unlawful for any business to keep or board any dog or cat for sale or profit, or to act as a breeder, without first obtaining a permit from the Elko County Sheriff's Office. The application needs the business name, facility address, type of animals bred and a copy of a State business license and Elko County Certificate of Business or Fictitious Firm name. The permit lasts one year and cannot be transferred, the fee is set by the Board of County Commissioners, and the Animal Control Officer or the Sheriff's Office can enter and inspect the premises at any reasonable hour.

Impounded cats follow the Section 7-2-10 path: after five days unclaimed, the Animal Control Officer can turn a cat over to the shelter. Adopters must agree to have the cat neutered or spayed at their own expense under Section 7-2-11(A). Section 7-2-6(A) bars owners from letting an animal run at large, while the restraint methods in subsection (B) are written for dogs.