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

Mono County does not have a standalone backyard-chicken ordinance. Instead, keeping poultry is governed by the animal-keeping standards in the Mono County General Plan Land Use Element (development standard Section 04.270), which apply in residential and rural designations including Estate Residential (ER), Rural Residential (RR), Rural Mobile Home (RMH), Agriculture (AG), Public Facilities (PF), Open Space (OS) and Single-Family Residential (SFR). The standards convert animals into 'animal units': one unit equals 10 chickens, ducks or game hens (excluding guinea hens and roosters in SFR), 6 geese, turkeys or similar fowl, or 12 fur-bearing animals including rabbits. In ER, RR, RMH, AG, PF and OS designations the allowance is generally one animal unit per 10,000 square feet of lot area for parcels of ten acres or less, with no numeric limit above ten acres. SFR parcels are more restrictive, allowing two units per 20,000 square feet (or one unit per 10,000 square feet over one acre) and excluding roosters and guinea hens through 'Director Review with Notice.' Animals may not be kept within fifty feet of a structure used for human habitation other than the keeper's own residence, though that setback does not apply in the OS, PF and AG designations. Mammoth Lakes, the only incorporated town, has its own rules and is not covered here.