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

Lake County's mandatory spay/neuter ordinance (Lake County Code section 4-17) applies to cats as well as dogs: section 4-17.1 prohibits owning, harboring, or keeping in the unincorporated county a dog or cat over four months of age that has not been spayed or neutered, unless exempt under section 4-17.3. Cat exemptions parallel the dog exemptions and include animals with a veterinarian-certified health reason and cats registered with a recognized registry such as the Cat Fanciers' Association and kept for show. Importantly, the ordinance defines ownership broadly - 'any person intentionally providing care or sustenance for a dog or cat shall be deemed the owner' - which means feeding outdoor cats can bring a feeder within the spay/neuter obligation. To make compliance practical and to control the free-roaming cat population, Lake County Animal Care & Control operates a community/stray cat program: residents can bring in community or stray cats and, for $15 per cat, the County will spay or neuter, vaccinate, and ear-notch the animal, then ask that the cat be returned to where it was found, rehomed, or kept. The program has averaged roughly 1,000 cat surgeries per year since its inception and is available to anyone in the unincorporated area of the county and the City of Lakeport (the County notes the program has been periodically suspended, so call ahead). There is no separate countywide cat-license requirement comparable to the dog license, and the County does not publish a leash requirement for cats. For the stray-cat program, residents call (707) 263-0278 for an appointment.