Sonoma County, CA Animal Ordinances: Chickens & Livestock (2026)

In the unincorporated county, the number of farm animals you may keep is set by the Sonoma County Zoning Code (Chapter 26) and administered by Permit Sonoma, the county's land-use and permitting agency, rather than by the Animal Services ordinance in Chapter 5. According to Permit Sonoma's agriculture and animals guidance, animal limits scale with the zoning district and parcel size. As an illustration the county gives for the Rural Residential (RR) district, a property may keep one horse or one cow, or five goats, or fifty chickens for every 20,000 square feet of parcel area.

In the Agriculture and Residential (AR) and the agricultural zoning districts, those same per-area limits apply to parcels of two acres or less, while larger parcels in those agricultural districts have no fixed numerical limit under the example given. Because exact allowances, setbacks, and any rooster or nuisance considerations turn on a parcel's specific zoning designation, residents should confirm their district and current standards with Permit Sonoma before establishing or expanding a flock or herd. Separately, animal-related odors, flies, or unsanitary conditions can be addressed as a public nuisance under County Code Chapter 5.