Medina, OH Animal Ordinances: Exotic Pets (2026)

14, adopted by Ordinance 16-84 on March 26, 1984, flatly bans possession of a dangerous animal in Medina: no person may keep, maintain, or have in their possession or control within the City any dangerous animal, defined as a wild mammal, reptile, or fowl that is not naturally tame or gentle, and that because of its size, vicious nature, or other characteristics would endanger human life or property. The section then lists specific covered species, including poisonous animals, alligators, apes and other primates, bears, bobcats, cheetahs, crocodilians, coyotes, deer, elephants, foxes, fighting birds, hyenas, big cats such as lions, tigers, and leopards, and venomous or constricting snakes.

The list functions as illustrative rather than exhaustive since the definition of dangerous animal governs even for species not separately named. Exceptions exist for circuses, for a person transporting an animal through the City if it is adequately restrained, for a bona fide licensed veterinary hospital providing treatment, for a temporary public exhibit of up to seven days unless the Mayor grants written approval for longer, and for bona fide educational or medical institutions and museums that keep specimens for instruction, study, or public exhibit, provided dangerous or poisonous reptiles are securely confined.

No permit process exists for a private resident to keep a listed species as a pet, so the ordinance operates as an outright ban rather than a registration scheme for the general public.