Petaluma, CA Animal Ordinances: Veterinary Clinic Zoning (2026)

3 of the Petaluma Implementing Zoning Ordinance, which sets allowed land uses and permit requirements for the city's Mixed Use zones, lists 'Veterinary Clinic, Animal Hospital' with a 'P(8)' designation in the MU1A, MU1B and MU2 zones, meaning the clinic itself is a Permitted use requiring only the standard building and business permits, not a discretionary hearing. The same use is marked with a dash in MU1C, the smaller-parcel West Petaluma mixed-use subzone, meaning it is not allowed there at all. Note 8, printed beneath the table, narrows the by-right status: 'A CUP is required for overnight board and care,' so a clinic that keeps animals overnight, rather than treating them during the day only, must obtain a conditional use permit from the Planning Commission before operating that part of the business.

030(B) explains generally that where a footnote or the Specific Use Regulations column attaches a condition to a use, that condition can determine whether a conditional use permit applies; here the footnote itself carries the added CUP trigger rather than a separate code section. 4, governing the C1, C2, Business Park and Industrial zones, so a veterinary practice weighing a commercial-zone location instead of a mixed-use one faces the same daytime-versus-overnight distinction. Practices should confirm with the Planning Division which zone their site sits in and whether their business model includes overnight boarding before assuming daytime-only permitted status covers the whole operation.