Tehama County, CA Animal Ordinances: Livestock (2026)

Raising livestock is fundamental to unincorporated Tehama County. The County Zoning Code (Title 17) sets how much stock a parcel can carry: in the 'A' Animal Raising Combining District, animal husbandry and livestock farming is limited to not more than one horse, cow, or similar livestock per acre of land area (Section 17.48.020), with keeping more livestock on parcels over one acre requiring a use permit; the 'light agriculture' definition allows commercial grazing of two animals per acre on parcels under twenty acres, with the permissible number for sheep or goats multiplied by three (Section 17.04.340); and residential-estate parcels are limited to one stable animal per acre (Section 17.14.020). Layered on top is California's statewide livestock framework in the Food and Agricultural Code: section 16902 makes it unlawful for an owner to willfully or negligently permit livestock to stray onto, or remain unaccompanied on, a public highway where both sides are adjoined by fenced or separated property; the estray provisions (sections 17001 et seq.) govern taking up and disposition of stray livestock; and brand inspection is regulated by the California Department of Food and Agriculture. Importantly, Tehama County is one of California's historic 'grazing counties' under Food and Agricultural Code sections 17121-17128, which authorizes ordinances allowing estray animals to be taken up on unenclosed land - a reflection of the county's open, rangeland character. For most landowners the practical rules are: keep stock on appropriately zoned acreage at the permitted density, maintain fencing adequate to keep animals off roads and neighbors' land, and avoid cruelty (enforceable under Penal Code 597).