Prince William County, VA Animal Ordinances: Exotic Pets (2026)

Article VI of Chapter 4 defines 'wild or exotic animal' in Sec. ' Ferrets, nonpoisonous snakes, captive-bred rabbits and lab rats are carved out of the definition. Sec. 4-71 then makes it unlawful to 'keep or permit to be kept any wild, exotic or vicious animal as a pet,' full stop, with no permit path for private ownership. Sec. 4-70 separately bars keeping such an animal for display or exhibition, gratuitous or paid, though it exempts properly licensed zoological parks, performing-animal exhibitions, circuses and veterinary clinics, and even those must never let the public physically touch the animals.

Anyone offering a wild or exotic animal for sale must post the statutory warning notice verbatim at the point of sale under Sec. 4-72. A transition clause in Sec. 4-75 gave anyone already keeping such an animal when the article passed five years to dispose of it and 60 days to register it with the department of animal control; today the article is enforced by the animal control officer or director of animal control under Sec. 4-74, who may release a seized animal to the wild, to a zoo, to a responsible adult, or euthanize it if warranted.