Lawton, OK Animal Ordinances: Cat Rules (2026)

Under Section 5-1-103(E), the city permits trap-neuter-return for feral cats operated by animal rescue groups that register with the animal welfare division. Registered organizations oversee designated feral cat colonies and the feral cat caregivers who feed them; the code's definitions section, 5-1-101, defines an eartip as removal of about three-eighths of an inch from the tip of a feral cat's left ear while anesthetized, marking it as part of a TNR program. Once eartipped, a cat trapped by a rescue group or by animal welfare staff is returned to its original location unless it needs veterinary care, in which case it goes to a rescue group instead of the shelter.

Feral cat caregivers may reclaim an impounded feral cat without proving ownership, and a caregiver who returns a cat under TNR is not treated as having abandoned it, an important distinction because Section 5-1-101 otherwise defines abandonment broadly. TNR cats are also carved out of the city's at-large definition: Section 5-1-101(A)(7) excludes cats under the TNR program from the "running at large" definition that otherwise applies to any animal not confined or under physical control. Owned, non-feral cats remain fully subject to the licensing scheme in Section 5-5-501: households may keep up to three dogs or cats without extra permits, cats over six months must hold either an "A" license (spayed/neutered) or "B" license (intact) tied to a current rabies vaccination certificate, and a fourth through seventh cat requires a special handler's license subject to a property inspection.