Kalamazoo, MI Animal Ordinances: Exotic Pets (2026)
Key Facts
- General ban
- Unlawful to keep exotic/wild animals
- Exempt institutions
- Zoos, circuses, accredited schools, medical labs
- Covered animals
- Big cats, wolves, venomous reptiles, primates
- Hybrids included
- Wolf-dog, coyote-dog, bobcat-cat crosses
- Enforcement
- Public Safety and county animal control
- Default penalty
- Up to $500 fine or 90 days jail
Summary
In the City of Kalamazoo it's unlawful to keep any exotic or wild animal under City Code § 7-7, unless you're a zoo, licensed circus, accredited school or a licensed medical or pharmaceutical laboratory. § 7-3 defines the category broadly, naming monkeys, big cats, wolves, venomous or constrictor reptiles, alligators, and wolf- or coyote-dog hybrids among the animals covered.
EXOTIC/WILD ANIMAL Any undomesticated animal or any dangerous animal normally classified as wild. In addition, this specifically includes, but is not limited to, the following animals: non-domestically bred parrots, parakeets or other exotic birds, Canada geese, alligators, bears ... wolves, coyotes, chimpanzees, venomous or constrictor reptiles, and wild felines. In addition, it shall include any hybrid between a wild animal and a domesticated animal, such as a hybrid between a dog and a wolf, a dog and a coyote, a cat and a bobcat, or other wild feline. ... ... § 7-7. Exotic/wild animals. It shall be unlawful for any person, other than a publicly maintained and supervised zoo or zoological garden, a licensed and authorized circus, an accredited and licensed educational institution, or an accredited and licensed medical or pharmaceutical laboratory maintained and operated by a corporation, firm, hospital, or health maintenance organization in which there is a laboratory for the primary benefit of human health care, to keep and maintain, or permit to be kept or maintained, any exotic or wild animal as deemed in § 7-3, "exotic/wild animal."
Full Breakdown
The Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety and the county's animal control officer enforce Chapter 7 under § 7-2 and may serve a summons or an appearance ticket for a violation. Section 7-3 defines EXOTIC/WILD ANIMAL to include any undomesticated animal or animal normally classified as wild, listing non-domestically bred parrots and other exotic birds, Canada geese, alligators, bears, wolves, coyotes, chimpanzees, venomous or constrictor reptiles and wild felines, and it extends the ban to hybrids between a wild animal and a domesticated one, such as a wolf-dog, coyote-dog or bobcat-cat cross.
Section 7-7 then bars keeping or maintaining any such animal except for a publicly maintained and supervised zoo or zoological garden, a licensed and authorized circus, an accredited and licensed educational institution, or an accredited and licensed medical or pharmaceutical laboratory operated for human health care. There is no private permit path around this ban; the exemptions run only to the four listed institutional categories, so a household pet falling within the definition is prohibited outright regardless of how it was acquired or how long it has been kept.
Violations & Fines
Keeping a banned exotic or wild animal is enforced by the Department of Public Safety and Kalamazoo County Animal Control, who may issue a summons or appearance ticket under § 7-2. Since § 7-7 states no separate fine, a violation defaults to City Code § 1-7's citywide penalty: a fine of not more than $500, up to 90 days in jail, or both, with each day of continued possession a separate offense.
Frequently Asked Questions
What counts as an exotic or wild animal in Kalamazoo?
Is there any way to legally keep an exotic animal in the city?
Who enforces the exotic animal ban?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Kalamazoo
Compare Kalamazoo to another location·View the Michigan animal ordinances overview
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