Moore County, NC Animal Ordinances: Pet Limits (2026)

Section 4-3(g) of the Moore County Code, part of the county's animal cruelty and care standards enforced by Moore County Animal Operations under the Sheriff's Office, regulates housing density for cats rather than setting a blanket household pet limit. Primary enclosures for cats must be structurally sound, kept in good repair, and built to prevent injury to the cats and keep other animals out. Each cat older than six months must get at least four square feet of floor space, which may include elevated resting surfaces, while a cat younger than six months needs at least one and one-half square feet.

Every enclosure must have a litter receptacle with clean litter, at a ratio of at least one box per three cats. The hard cap is explicit: no more than 12 cats may be housed in the same primary enclosure at one time. The same section sets parallel pen-size minimums for dogs by size class, from 24 square feet for a small dog up to 48 square feet for an extra-large dog over 75 pounds or taller than 26 inches at the withers. Moore County does not otherwise cap the number of dogs, cats or other pets a household may keep; the enforceable limit found in the code is this per-enclosure cat cap and the related space and litter-box standards, which fall under the general Chapter 4 penalty in Section 4-10 when violated.