Medford, OR Animal Ordinances: Wildlife Feeding (2026)

Section 5.608 of the Medford Code states plainly that no person may feed wildlife within the City of Medford, and Section 5.607 defines "wildlife" to mean deer, raccoon, wild turkey, and "potentially habituated wildlife," which the same section defines as bear, cougar, coyote, and wolf. "Feed" is defined broadly in 5.607(1) to mean placing, depositing, distributing, storing, or scattering food, garbage, or any other attractant so as to lure, attract, or entice wildlife, which reaches routine acts like leaving pet food or garbage out as well as intentional feeding.

The Council's stated intent in Section 5.606 is that feeding these animals creates an unnecessary risk of injury to people and companion animals and causes damage to landscaping, fences, and dwellings, and that prohibiting it promotes public health, safety, and welfare. Section 5.608(2) makes a violation a continuing offense: every day the violation exists is a separate violation, so a resident who keeps a feeder out accrues a new citation daily rather than a single one-time penalty. Section 5.609 goes further and declares a violation of 5.608 a public nuisance, allowing the City to abate it under the general nuisance abatement procedure in Section 5.520, which can include City-ordered cleanup with costs assessed against the property. The whole feeding-wildlife article, Sections 5.606 through 5.609, was added by Ordinance No. 2016-85 on July 21, 2016, and has not been amended since.