Old Bridge, NJ Animal Ordinances: Pet Limits (2026)

Chapter 39, Article I opens with a blanket rule at § 39-1: no person may keep any animals in the Township except as this article allows. Section 39-2 carves out dogs licensed and regulated under Article II, but even then, the numeric limit in § 39-4 still applies. That limit, § 39-4A, restricts any lot under two acres to no more than three dogs and three cats six months of age or older; younger puppies and kittens are not counted. The same section sets separate thresholds for other animals: horses are barred outright below two acres, pigs require at least five acres with a maximum of two animals per first five acres plus one more per additional acre and a 250-foot setback from roads, and cows or other animals besides common household pets and permitted chickens need five acres or more.

Every premises keeping animals under this article must also meet the health and sanitation standards of § 39-3, covering odor and noise control, sanitary construction, adequate water supply, mosquito-breeding prevention, waste disposal, rodent and insect control, and secure fencing to prevent escapes. Section 39-3B gives the Health Officer and/or Zoning Officer authority to inspect any premises keeping animals to enforce these standards, including the three-dog, three-cat cap.