San Clemente, CA Animal Ordinances: Wildlife Feeding (2026)
Key Facts
- Banned to feed
- Coyotes, raccoons, foxes, skunks, opossums
- Exception
- Licensed owner feeding own animal
- Exception
- Food/water for trapped or injured wildlife
- Pigeon feeding ban location
- San Clemente Municipal Pier
- Pigeon-feeding 1st offense fine
- $50
- Pigeon-feeding 3rd+ offense fine
- $200
- Pigeon enforcement
- Police Services, Coastal Animal Services Authority, OC Sheriff
Summary
San Clemente bans feeding coyotes and other non-domesticated predators citywide, with narrow exceptions for licensed animal owners and injured wildlife. A separate rule bans feeding wild pigeons on the municipal pier, with fines up to $200.
No person shall feed or in any manner provide food for non-domesticated mammalian predators such as coyotes (Canis latrans). This section shall also include a ban on feeding raccoons, foxes, skunks and opossums. ... The following are exceptions to the prohibition set forth in Section 6.28.070: A.When an owner is in legal possession of a non-domesticated animal that is kept under a valid license issued by the authority or cities served by the authority; orB.When a person provides food and water for a trapped, injured or un-weaned non-domesticated animal during the time the agency in charge is notified and the animal has been picked up.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Traffic: Supplement 30 | Code of Ordinances: Supplement 66 Update 1).
Full Breakdown
070 of the San Clemente Municipal Code prohibits feeding or in any manner providing food to non-domesticated mammalian predators such as coyotes, and the same section extends the ban to raccoons, foxes, skunks and opossums. 080 sets two exceptions: an owner in legal possession of a non-domesticated animal under a valid license from the Coastal Animal Services Authority may feed that specific animal, and anyone may feed and water a trapped, injured or un-weaned wild animal while waiting for the responsible agency to pick it up.
090 bans feeding wild pigeons, defined as the common Rock Dove, on the San Clemente Municipal Pier. That section is enforceable by San Clemente Police Services, the Coastal Animal Services Authority, other city employees, or the Orange County Sheriff's Department, and it carries its own graduated fine schedule rather than relying on the general Title 6 penalty scheme. 20 govern how those citations are processed and appealed.
Violations & Fines
Feeding a coyote, raccoon, fox, skunk or opossum is generally an infraction under Section 6.04.070, fined up to $100 for a first offense and up to $500 for repeat offenses within a year under Section 1.16.010. Feeding wild pigeons on the municipal pier carries its own fine schedule under Section 6.28.090: $50 for a first offense, $100 for a second offense within a year, and $200 for a third or later offense in that period.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it illegal to feed coyotes in San Clemente?
Can I ever legally feed a wild animal?
Is feeding pigeons on the pier illegal too?
Who enforces the pigeon-feeding ban?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in San Clemente
California rules heatmap·Compare San Clemente to another location·View the California animal ordinances overview
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Wildlife Feeding in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Orange County handle wildlife feeding.