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

Rather than a blanket spay-and-neuter mandate, Milpitas Municipal Code Chapter 210 regulates unsterilized animals through two targeted rules. Section V-210-7.02-1, within the household pet-limit exception, caps ownership at one unspayed female dog and one unspayed female cat per household; because the Section creates a rebuttable presumption that any female dog or cat is unspayed unless the owner shows evidence of spaying, the practical effect is that an owner of multiple female dogs or cats must be ready to prove sterilization for all but one. A veterinarian's written certification that an animal cannot be spayed for health reasons, or is incapable of breeding, counts as that proof in place of a spay certificate.

Separately, Section V-210-6.10 makes it unlawful for an unsterilized dog or cat to run at large on any public street or public place, or on private property or a common area of a planned development, cluster townhome or condominium project, without the consent of the property owner or person in control of the property. Rabies vaccination, required for every dog or cat over four months old under Section V-210-6.04, is unaffected by sterilization status. Together the two Sections push owners toward sterilizing pets without formally outlawing an unsterilized one, and both sit inside the same Chapter 210 licensing and permit-exception framework that lets the Administrator inspect, cite or impound noncompliant animals.