Riverside County, CA Animal Ordinances: Exotic Pets (2026)

County zoning code defines a "menagerie" as a lot keeping any venomous reptile, a non-venomous reptile over 10 pounds, a bird over 20 pounds, a mammal over 20 pounds, or ten-plus non-venomous reptiles or twenty-five-plus mammals of any size, even if tamed or trained. That use is listed only as a conditional-use-permit item in rural zones like R-R and A-1; the standard R-1 one-family zone does not list menageries as a permitted or conditionally permitted use at all, so exotic animals at that scale aren't allowed on ordinary residential lots in the unincorporated county without going through the rural-zone CUP process. The rule applies only in unincorporated Riverside County, the county's 28 cities, including Riverside, Temecula, Palm Springs and Indio, each set their own animal-keeping rules.