Whatcom County, WA Animal Ordinances: Exotic Pets (2026)

020(L) defines "exotic animal" broadly to include animals not native to or usually kept as domestic pets, naming lions, tigers, bears, gorillas, chimpanzees, lynx, cougars, jaguars and venomous snakes, and separately reaches "wild animals" native to the United States but not normally domesticated, including wolves, raccoons, skunks, foxes and coyotes along with wolf and coyote hybrids. 070(A) requires anyone who wants to own or maintain such an animal to obtain a permit from the animal control authority, but the permit is issued only for the creation of a sanctuary, never for keeping the animal as a personal pet; distribution, sale, trade, breeding, allowing reproduction, or release of any wild or exotic animal is prohibited outright.

To qualify, an applicant must house animals to current American Zoo Association enclosure standards, keep a veterinarian involved in monitoring the animals' health, carry at least $1,000,000 in liability insurance before the permit issues, and pay an annual permit fee set in the Whatcom County Unified Fee Schedule; the sanctuary cannot be open to the public. 070(C) allows revocation for any chapter violation or for refusing an inspection, after which the animals must immediately leave the county. 070(E) exempts traveling circuses and zoos staying 30 days or less with advance notice to the animal control authority, state-registered wildlife rehabilitation centers, and existing wolf and coyote hybrids already in the county.