Visalia, CA Animal Ordinances: Wildlife Feeding (2026)

There is no provision in Tulare County Ordinance Code Chapter 4-7 that generally prohibits feeding wildlife; the county's animal control rules focus on domestic animals, livestock, and dangerous animals rather than on feeding wild species. The operative restriction therefore comes from California state law. Under California Code of Regulations, Title 14, Section 251.3 ("Prohibition Against Feeding Big Game Mammals"), no person shall knowingly feed big-game mammals. "Big game" is defined in Title 14, Section 350 to include deer (genus Odocoileus), elk, pronghorn antelope, black bear, and Nelson bighorn sheep. This makes intentionally feeding deer and other big game illegal statewide, including in unincorporated Tulare County, and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) enforces it. State law also addresses harassment of wildlife and the handling of mammals that become a nuisance or depredation problem. Beyond the big-game feeding ban, residents who feed other wild animals can still create problems that draw enforcement under other authorities, for example if feeding attracts a potentially dangerous animal or creates a public-health nuisance. Because the rule here is state law rather than a county ordinance, complaints about wildlife feeding are typically directed to CDFW rather than to Tulare County Animal Services.