Fairfield, CA Animal Ordinances: Mandatory Spay/Neuter (2026)

77(a) lists conditions a hearing officer may impose before releasing a dangerous animal from confinement or impoundment. Subsection (a)(4) authorizes an order to have the animal spayed or neutered by a licensed veterinarian, with proof presented to the animal control officer, alongside other conditions such as secure confinement, muzzling on leash, liability insurance, warning signage, and registration as a dangerous animal. 75 result in a determination that a specific animal is dangerous; Fairfield does not require every dog or cat in the city to be spayed or neutered, and pet owners outside the dangerous-animal process face no such mandate under Chapter 3.

The dangerous-animal determination itself follows an evidentiary hearing where the hearing officer weighs bite history, provocation, and the animal's temperament, with the burden on the animal control officer as petitioner. 76 gives the owner or the animal control officer five days after notice to appeal the determination to the Solano County Superior Court under California Food and Agricultural Code Section 31622. 79(c) can bar the owner from possessing another animal of that type for three years.