Santa Barbara County, CA Animal Ordinances: Cat Rules (2026)

Santa Barbara County Animal Services administers animal licensing for unincorporated areas and several contract cities. While all dogs four months and older must be vaccinated against rabies and licensed annually, cat licensing remains voluntary at this time, and there is no mandatory cat-license requirement. The County does not impose a cat leash law, and the Land Use & Development Code does not set a specific numeric cap on cats the way it caps dogs at three per lot. That said, cats are not unregulated: the general restraint and nuisance provisions of County Code Chapter 7 apply to all animals, so a cat allowed to repeatedly trespass, damage property, or create a nuisance can be addressed under those rules. California Food & Agricultural Code provisions on rabies control also reach cats, and Penal Code Section 597 (animal cruelty) and Section 597.1 (neglect) protect cats from abuse and neglect statewide. Owners are strongly encouraged to spay or neuter, microchip, and vaccinate cats even though a license is not mandatory. Feral and free-roaming cat issues are generally handled through Animal Services and trap-neuter-return practices rather than a specific County ordinance.