Prescott Valley, AZ Animal Ordinances: Mandatory Spay/Neuter (2026)

The Town Code text contains no blanket requirement that owners sterilize their pets. Sterilization shows up in one place as a condition of release, Section 6-01-120(C), which governs a dog or cat impounded as the result of biting any person. That animal cannot be released from the pound to its owner unless one of six listed conditions applies, and the list is introduced by the words one of the following, so meeting any one condition unlocks release.

The six conditions are: the dog has a current dog license pursuant to ARS § 11-1008 at the time the dog entered the pound; the dog or cat was previously spayed or neutered before impound, or has been spayed or neutered and implanted with a microchip before release from the pound; there is no veterinary facility capable of performing surgical sterilization within a twenty mile radius of the pound; a veterinarian determines that a medical contraindication for surgery exists that reasonably requires postponement until the surgery can be performed in a safe and humane manner; the bite occurred in the premises of the owner and the victim is a member of the same household; or the owner pays a recovery fee set in the Comprehensive Fee Schedule, in addition to other fees and costs.

The release rule sits beside the bite-reporting duty. Section 6-01-120(A) requires any person with first-hand knowledge to report a bite immediately to the Animal Services Officer or the Police Department. Under subsection B, an unvaccinated dog or cat that bites is confined and quarantined for a period of not less than ten days, starting on the day of the bite.

Sterilization also affects licensing and stray cats. Section 6-01-070(C) requires a veterinarian-signed certificate as proof when a dog being licensed has been spayed or neutered. Section 6-01-130(B) exempts an impounded stray cat eligible for sterilization under A.R.S. § 11-1022, one returned to the vicinity where it was captured, from the mandatory holding period.