Norfolk, VA Animal Ordinances: Pet Limits (2026)

1-8(a) sets the citywide limit at no more than four adult dogs and four adult cats per dwelling unit or premises. The section carries a one-time grandfather provision: anyone who, before October 1, 1999, owned or had custody of more than the allowable number was required to obtain a license for each additional adult dog or cat, and was not cited for exceeding the cap while those specifically licensed animals remained in their custody. That protection is not transferable. Once a grandfathered dog or cat dies, is lost, or changes ownership, the owner or custodian may not replace it with another animal kept over the four-per-species limit; the household drops back to the standard cap.

1-8(c) exempts licensed kennels, veterinarians, animal shelters, humane societies, licensed temporary exhibits, licensed pet shops, kennels housing law-enforcement animals, and registered free-roaming cat caregivers, and the ordinance states plainly that no other exceptions are authorized. 1 sets a separate four-rabbit cap per dwelling unit, run on the same premises basis but without the 1999 grandfather language. 1-3, which has authority to inspect properties and issue summonses for violations of the animal chapter.