Salinas, CA Animal Ordinances: Chickens & Livestock (2026)

Section 7-21 states plainly that 'the keeping of livestock shall be prohibited in the city,' then defines livestock broadly as any animal typically associated with an agricultural, ranching, or farming setting, naming cows, pigs, sheep, horses, alpaca, goats, and 'poultry or fowl' as examples, without carving out any minimum-number or backyard-flock exception in the animal chapter itself. The only escape valve the section allows is a use 'permitted pursuant to Chapter 37 of the city Code,' the Salinas Zoning Code, meaning any lawful livestock or poultry keeping has to come through a zoning classification, district standard, or similar approval rather than through Chapter 7.

The current flat prohibition replaced an older permit-based livestock scheme: former Sections 7-22 through 7-31, which required a permit application, a planning-commission hearing, and a revocable permit for keeping livestock, were repealed by Ordinance No. 2526 in 2011 and folded into the current prohibition-with-zoning-exception structure. Because the animal chapter no longer contains its own standards for lot size, coop construction, or setbacks for any fowl that may be allowed, anyone wanting to keep chickens, ducks, or other poultry in Salinas must confirm what, if anything, their specific zoning district permits under Chapter 37 before assuming Section 7-21's citywide ban does not reach them.