Escondido, CA Animal Ordinances: Pet Limits (2026)

Section 33-1116(e) of the Escondido Zoning Code sets household dog-and-cat limits by residential zone once a pet is older than four months. In the RA (residential agricultural) and RE (residential estates) zones, households may keep up to four dogs and four cats. On standard R-1 lots under 10,000 square feet, the limit drops to two of each. On R-1 lots between 10,000 and 20,000 square feet, the base limit is two dogs and three cats, and on R-1 lots larger than 20,000 square feet the limit rises back to four of each.

In the higher-density RT, R-2, R-3 and R-4 zones, households are capped at one dog and one cat. Section 33-1116(g) lets a property owner apply for a minor conditional use permit to keep more animals, but for dogs and cats the increase is fixed by the same subsection (e) schedule, not open-ended: up to six of each in RA/RE, up to four of each on smaller and mid-size R-1 lots, and up to two of each in RT/R-2/R-3/R-4. The same section separately schedules limits for tropical fish, caged birds, racing pigeons and small mammals such as rabbits and guinea pigs.

Subsection (f) lets the zoning administrator approve similar animals not specifically listed if they are no more obnoxious or dangerous than the enumerated species. Subsection (i), added by Ordinance No. 2018-20, clarifies that adding a legal accessory dwelling unit to a lot does not create a second dwelling unit for pet-counting purposes; the parcel stays held to the single-dwelling total. The rule traces to a 1990 Zoning Code amendment (Ordinance No. 90-40) and was last amended by Ordinance No. 2020-31R in January 2021.