Murrieta, CA Animal Ordinances: Pet Groomer Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- General rule
- Kennels/grooming facilities barred as home occupations
- Exception
- Indoor-only animal sitting or grooming permitted
- Animal cap
- Set by cross-referenced Section 16.44.040
- Customer limit
- 1 at a time, 7 a.m.-7 p.m. Mon-Sat
- Frequency cap
- 1 customer per 2-hour period
Summary
Murrieta generally bans pet grooming and kennel operations from residential home occupations, but carves out a narrow exception. Section 16.60.050(L)(4) lists "Animal Hospitals, Kennels and grooming facilities" as prohibited, while footnote 1 to that subsection allows animal sitting or grooming conducted entirely indoors, subject to strict animal-count and customer limits.
Animal sitting or grooming facilities may be permitted when conducted entirely indoors; the total number of animals present at any given time shall not exceed that allowed in Section 16.44.040. Grooming services shall be limited to one customer on the premises at any one time, between 7:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m., Monday through Saturday with no more than one customer within a 2-hour time period.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: 2026 S-23: A Codification of the General Ordinances of the City of Murrieta, California through Ord. 634-26, passed 7-7-2026).
Full Breakdown
" Any indoor animal-care business also has to fit inside the chapter's general home occupation conditions: it must stay incidental to the residential use under subsection (A), show no exterior evidence such as outdoor kenneling or visible equipment under subsection (B), and keep the required residential parking available under subsection (F). 090 to confirm the animal count and indoor-only operation are being maintained.
Violations & Fines
Grooming or boarding animals outdoors, or exceeding the animal-count limit cross-referenced in Section 16.44.040, takes the business outside footnote 1's exception and back under the flat prohibition in Section 16.60.050(L)(4), exposing the operator to permit denial or revocation. Seeing more than one grooming customer at a time or scheduling visits closer than every two hours also breaches the footnote's own customer cap. Decisions may be appealed under Chapter 16.78.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I run a dog grooming business from my Murrieta home?
Can I board and groom dogs in an outdoor kennel run at home?
How many animals can I groom or board at once?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Murrieta
California rules heatmap·Compare Murrieta to another location·View the California animal ordinances overview
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