La Mesa, CA Animal Ordinances: Pet Limits (2026)
Key Facts
- Single-family dog limit
- Up to five adult dogs per home
- Multi-family dog limit
- Two adult dogs per unit
- Cat limit
- Two, up to ten if spayed/neutered
- Potbellied pigs
- Two adult pigs per dwelling unit
- Chickens (R1/R2/R3)
- 2 per 2,000 sq ft, max 20, no roosters
- Governing section
- LMMC § 24.05.020(D)(2)-(3)
- Enforcement
- Community Development code enforcement
Summary
In the City of La Mesa, the zoning code, not the animal code, sets numeric pet limits. Section 24.05.020(D) caps dogs at two per multi-family unit and up to five per single-family lot in every residential zone, from R1E through RB. Cats are limited to two per dwelling, rising to ten if the extras are spayed or neutered, and each home may keep two adult potbellied pigs.
3.In zones R1E, R1R, R1S, R1, and R1A, for the sole use and pleasure of the family occupying the premises, animals may be kept as follows, subject in addition to all applicable limitations and regulations of Title 8:a.Two adult dogs per multi-family dwelling unit and up to five adult dogs for a single-family dwelling unit.b.Two adult cats per dwelling unit. The number of adult cats may be increased, to a maximum of ten, if those cats exceeding the first two are spayed or neutered.c.Two adult potbellied pigs per dwelling unit.d.Ordinary household pets (no limits except for those listed above).
Full Breakdown
The La Mesa Municipal Code addresses household pet numbers through the zoning ordinance's accessory-use rules rather than Title 8's animal chapter; Section 8.04.310 itself says only 'See Chapter 24 (Zoning Ordinance).' Section 24.05.020(D)(2) governs the R2, R3 and RB zones and Section 24.05.020(D)(3) governs R1E, R1R, R1S, R1 and R1A: in both, a household may keep up to two adult dogs in a multi-family unit or up to five adult dogs in a single-family dwelling, two adult cats per dwelling (up to ten if the extras beyond the first two are spayed or neutered), and two adult potbellied pigs per dwelling unit.
Ordinary household pets carry no separate numeric cap beyond those species-specific limits. The same subsection bars boarding or keeping animals for others on residential lots and layers on chicken allowances: R1 and R2/R3 lots with one single-family home may keep at least two chickens (no roosters) per 2,000 square feet of lot, up to twenty, in a covered, setback-compliant enclosure at least twenty-five feet from any neighboring dwelling. Because the limits sit in the zoning code, Community Development's code enforcement division, not just Police or County Animal Services, can act against an over-limit household. Owners must still comply with Title 8's separate rabies-vaccination and dog-licensing rules for every animal kept within these caps.
Violations & Fines
Exceeding the dog, cat or potbellied-pig cap, or boarding animals for others, is a zoning code violation that La Mesa Community Development's code enforcement division can act on, typically by ordering the household down to the permitted number or removing the prohibited animals. Because Section 24.05.020 sits in the zoning title, enforcement follows the code's standard zoning-violation and abatement procedures rather than a separate animal-control fine schedule.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many dogs can I have at my La Mesa home?
Can I keep more than two cats in La Mesa?
Are backyard chickens allowed alongside my dogs and cats?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in La Mesa
California rules heatmap·Compare La Mesa to another location·View the California animal ordinances overview
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Pet Limits in Nearby Cities
How other cities in San Diego County handle pet limits.