Harrisburg, PA Animal Ordinances: Pet Limits (2026)

Section 3-505.8 of the Harrisburg Codified Ordinances sets the dog and cat limit: no more than five dogs or cats, or any combination, within the City limits in one residence or building. The limit counts animals per residence or building, not per person, so a multi-tenant building is measured as one.

The section protects existing households. A person whose number of dogs or cats already exceeded five before the effective date is not affected, but once animals are eliminated by adoption, death or any permanent removal, the limit of five cannot be exceeded. Kennels and catteries holding a kennel/cattery permit from the Animal Control Section are outside the limit, and so are kennels registered with the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture.

Section 3-509.2 covers every other kind of animal. Except as provided in § 3-509.7 on farm animals, no person is permitted to own, harbor or maintain more than five animals, regardless of species, in one residence or building, and in no event can the maximum number of animals in any residence or household within the City exceed 10. Animals other than dogs or cats that exceeded five before the effective date are grandfathered, with the same rule that removal cannot be refilled above five.

The Animal Control Section can grant an exemption permit, at its sole discretion, to persons or residences that provide temporary foster care and do placement work. There is no fee for it. Even with an exemption permit, the total of all animals, including dogs and cats, cannot exceed 10 in the residence or building.