Santa Ana, CA Animal Ordinances: Veterinary Clinic Zoning (2026)

Two districts list the use. Section 41-365(i) places "Animal hospitals and veterinaries" among the uses permitted in the C1 district, and § 41-521(d) places "Animal hospitals and veterinarians" among the uses permitted in the C-SM district, the South Main Street commercial district that § 41-520 sets apart under its own division. Permitted means by right. The conditional use permit lists in § 41-365.5 (fifteen items, (a) through (o)) and § 41-522 (twelve items, (a) through (l)) do not name a veterinary use.

Section 41-76 defines an animal hospital as an establishment in which veterinarian services are rendered to dogs, cats and other small animals and domestic pets. The definition is written around small animals and pets.

Boarding is a separate question. Section 41-94 defines a kennel as any lot, building, structure, enclosure, premise or place where three or more dogs are kept for breeding, training, raising, boarding or as pets. Neither the C1 nor the C-SM use list names kennels. The zoning chapter lists kennels as a conditional use in the A1 district (§ 41-201.5) and, as "Kennels for the temporary care and lodging of dogs and other domesticated household animals," in the M1 district (§ 41-472.5(e)).

Operating rules follow the use into both districts. Sections 41-366(a) and 41-523(a) require all business activities to be conducted and located within an enclosed building, and the outdoor exceptions they list (plant nurseries, recreational or entertainment uses, youth amusement rides, and in C1 also automobile sales and parking lots) do not include a veterinary use. Section 41-523(b) bars outside storage in C-SM, and § 41-366(b) limits C1 storage to goods sold at retail on the premises or used in the course of business. Section 41-366(d) bars sales directly from a building to persons on a public sidewalk.

Chapter 5 adds sanitation duties. Under § 5-69(f), cages in veterinary clinics and hospitals must be cleaned and disinfected at least once each day, and animals receiving medical care and quarantined animals shall not be commingled. Section 5-70 bars using any part of a kennel or veterinary hospital where animals are kept, caged or boarded for human habitation, and bars preparing or serving food for human consumption in the same room. Section 5-71 says the animal article cannot be used to interfere with a licensed veterinarian's practice, but the veterinarian must still comply with its sanitation provisions.

Parking is the loose end. No parking section in the zoning chapter names animal hospitals. Section 41-1346 sets five spaces per 1,000 square feet of gross floor area for medical, dental, psychiatric and chiropractic offices and clinics, so an applicant should confirm with city planning staff which line applies before drawing a site plan.

Both use sections were last amended by Ordinance NS-3038 on February 7, 2023.