Pender County, NC Animal Ordinances: Cat Rules (2026)

Section 6-60 makes it unlawful for an owner or keeper to fail to keep a current rabies vaccination for any dog, cat, or ferret four months of age or older, and the county board of commissioners sets the fee for vaccinations given by county-certified rabies vaccinators unless the shot comes from a free county rabies clinic. Section 6-61 then issues a rabies tag and certificate for each vaccinated animal, but subsection (b) singles cats out: while a dog owner must attach the current rabies tag to a collar or harness, cats and ferrets are expressly exempt from wearing the tag at all.

A cat is nonetheless subject to impoundment under section 6-93 if it becomes a nuisance, as defined in section 6-2 to include an animal that interferes with or attacks people or other animals, chases pedestrians or vehicles, or lacks a valid rabies vaccination, and cats brought into the county must be confined and vaccinated within a week of entry under section 6-61(e). If a cat is impounded, shelter staff scan it for a microchip within 24 hours under section 6-94(a), and an owner has 72 hours after posted notice to redeem it by paying the fee set by the Board of Commissioners.

There is no separate cat licensing program, no numeric limit on how many cats a household may keep, and no feral-colony registration ordinance in the county code; the health director administers rabies enforcement in coordination with the sheriff's animal control program.