Clovis's Animal Ordinances: The Rules That Matter

Every city handles animal ordinances a little differently. In Clovis, California, there are 13 distinct rules that residents and property owners should be aware of. Some are stricter than what neighboring cities enforce, and others are more relaxed. Here is what you need to know.

Dog Leash Laws

Clovis Municipal Code § 6.1.307 bars owners from letting any animal, except a spayed or neutered cat, run at large in the city; a first offense is an infraction, but an animal caught at large three times in 12 months is deemed a public nuisance that the owner must remove from City limits entirely.

Key details: Governing section: CMC § 6.1.307. Cat exemption: Spayed/neutered cats only. First offense: Infraction. 3 violations in 12 months: Deemed public nuisance. Failure to remove animal: Misdemeanor.

A single at-large violation is charged as an infraction. Once the same animal is caught at large three or more times within a 12-month period, § 6.1.307 deems it a public nuisance and requires the owner to remove it from Clovis's incorporated limits; failing to do so is a misdemeanor, a materially harsher penalty than the underlying infraction. Failure to comply with a written abatement order under § 6.1.308 for a menacing animal is a separate violation for each day the nuisance continues.

Pet Store Rules

Clovis pet stores may sell dogs and cats, but only inside a permitted store; Municipal Code § 6.1.517 bars anyone from selling, bartering, or giving away a puppy or kitten under eight weeks old, from doing so on a public street, sidewalk, or at a swap meet, or from using a dog or cat as a contest prize.

Key details: Minimum sale age: 8 weeks old. Public-property sales: Prohibited. Swap meet sales: Prohibited. Contest/prize giveaways: Prohibited. Sales to minors: Written parent/guardian consent required.

Selling or displaying a puppy or kitten under eight weeks old, transacting on a public sidewalk or at a swap meet, or offering a dog or cat as a contest prize violates § 6.1.517 and is enforced as any other Municipal Code violation, a misdemeanor under § 1.2.01 unless the citation is issued as an infraction; a pet store selling outside its permitted premises loses the section's exemption and faces the same citation.

Cat Rules

Clovis does not license cats: Municipal Code § 6.1.201 requires tags only for dogs and Vietnamese potbellied pigs. Spayed or neutered cats are also the only animal exempt from the citywide at-large ban under § 6.1.307, though feeding a feral cat or colony remains a separate violation under § 6.1.519.

Key details: City cat license: Not required. Licenses required for: Dogs and potbellied pigs only. At-large exemption: Spayed/neutered cats only. Public nuisance threshold: 3+ at-large incidents/12 months. Feral cat/colony feeding: Unlawful (§6.1.519).

An unspayed or unneutered cat found at large violates § 6.1.307 as an infraction; three or more at-large incidents within twelve months make the animal a public nuisance, and a failure to remove it from City limits becomes a misdemeanor. Separately, feeding a feral cat or colony violates § 6.1.519 no matter whether the cat is altered, and Animal Services enforces it like any other Municipal Code violation under the default misdemeanor/infraction scheme of § 1.2.01.

Clovis is more permissive than most cities when it comes to cat rules. That said, there are still limits.

Wildlife Feeding

Clovis bars feeding any household or wild bird outdoors if it creates health or sanitation problems, property damage, slippery sidewalks, dependency, or draws coyotes, squirrels, rats, or other vermin. Municipal Code § 6.1.520 also treats a feeding-related disturbance, like the noise a flock attracts, as a violation if it disturbs two or more neighboring households.

Key details: Governs: Outdoor feeding of household or wild birds. Violation trigger: Any of 6 listed harms. Named vermin: Coyotes, squirrels, rats. Disturbance threshold: 2+ surrounding households. Default penalty: Misdemeanor (§1.2.01).

Feeding birds outdoors in a way that draws vermin, damages property, soils or slickens sidewalks, creates dependency, or disturbs two or more neighboring households violates § 6.1.520; because the section carries no stated penalty class, § 1.2.01 makes it a misdemeanor by default unless charged as an infraction, and repeat complaints can support a broader nuisance abatement action similar to the menacing-animal process in § 6.1.308.

Microchipping

Clovis doesn't require every pet owner to microchip their animal, but Municipal Code § 6.1.406 requires Animal Services to implant a microchip in every dog or cat impounded at the Clovis Animal Shelter that isn't already chipped, and bills the implantation cost to the owner as part of the impound fee.

Key details: Governing section: CMC § 6.1.406. Trigger: Dog/cat impounded at shelter, not yet chipped. Cost responsibility: Owner, via the impound fee. Owner's ongoing duty: Keep chip registry info current. Related rule: Vicious-animal release also requires a chip.

Chapter 6.1 doesn't create a standalone citation for an owner who fails to update microchip registry information; instead, the consequence flows through the impound and redemption system. An animal cannot be redeemed from the Animal Shelter under § 6.1.408 until the owner pays the impound fee, which includes the microchip implantation cost the owner is obligated to cover under § 6.1.406. For a vicious-animal release, failing to arrange and pay for the required microchip within the disposition process can result in the animal being treated as abandoned and disposed of under § 6.1.410.

The rules around microchipping in Clovis lean permissive, but that does not mean anything goes.

Breed Restrictions

Clovis has no ordinance singling out any dog breed. Instead, Municipal Code Article 6 (§§ 6.1.601-6.1.608) lets the Supervisor of Animal Services or Chief of Police petition to have any animal, of any breed, declared 'potentially dangerous' or 'vicious' based on its actual bite or attack history, triggering mandatory confinement, licensing, and spay/neuter rules.

Key details: Petition authority: Supervisor of Animal Services or Police Chief. Vicious-animal spay/neuter deadline: 10 days, $1,000 deposit. Potentially-dangerous leash rule: 6-foot leash off premises. Same-species ownership ban: 3 years after vicious finding. Appeal deadline: 5-6 days to Fresno Superior Court.

Keeping or harboring a vicious animal is itself a misdemeanor under § 6.1.607, and the City may pursue a criminal citation as an alternative to the petition process, with a court able to order the animal destroyed or placed under strict confinement conditions upon conviction. Any violation of an Article 6 order from a court, hearing officer, or the Supervisor of Animal Services is a misdemeanor carrying civil penalties of up to $1,000 under § 6.1.608. If an owner fails to meet confinement, spay/neuter, or licensing requirements within the deadlines set for a dangerous-animal finding, § 6.1.605 requires the animal be euthanized, with proof of euthanasia due to the Supervisor of Animal Services within three days.

This is not one of those rules that cities tend to ignore. Clovis actively enforces its breed restrictions requirements.

Pet Limits

Clovis Municipal Code § 6.1.301 caps household pets at three dogs, three cats, three reptiles, and two Vietnamese potbellied pigs per premises, but the combined dog/cat/pig total cannot exceed three animals and every household is capped at six pets total across all species.

Key details: Max dogs: 3 per premises. Max cats: 3 per premises. Combined dog/cat/pig cap: 3 animals. Household-wide total cap: 6 animals, all species. Potbellied pigs: 2 max, banned in multi-family units.

Exceeding the household pet caps in § 6.1.301 is treated as operating an unlicensed kennel or breeding facility, which is subject to the City's zoning standards for kennels and breeders rather than a simple fine; that means the property must sit in an R-A, C-M, or M-1 district and the operator must obtain a conditional use permit, or else face zoning enforcement for the unpermitted use. Keeping more than two Vietnamese potbellied pigs, keeping any in a multi-family dwelling, or keeping one that exceeds the 22-inch/120-pound size limit separately violates § 6.1.302.

Chickens & Livestock

Clovis zoning limits backyard poultry, rabbits and small furbearing animals to the R-R, R-A and R-1-A districts, with coops kept 25 feet from any property line, 100 feet from the front line, and 40 feet from doors or windows. Larger livestock, goats, horses, sheep and cattle, need at least 24,000 square feet of parcel area under Municipal Code § 9.40.040.

Key details: Allowed zones for poultry/rabbits: R-R, R-A, R-1-A only. Coop setback from property line: 25 feet minimum. Coop setback from front line: 100 feet minimum. Coop setback from windows/doors: 40 feet minimum. Min. parcel for goats/horses/sheep: 24,000 sq ft.

Keeping poultry or livestock outside an allowed zoning district, or violating the setback, parcel-size, or fencing standards of §§ 9.40.040 and 6.1.513, is enforced as a Municipal Code violation; absent a specific infraction designation, Clovis Municipal Code § 1.2.01 makes the default classification a misdemeanor, and Code Enforcement or Animal Services may order the animals removed or issue a citation carrying fees set in the City's Master Administrative Fee Schedule.

Mandatory Spay/Neuter

Clovis requires every dog or cat over four months old to be spayed or neutered unless the owner documents a specific exemption, and no shelter animal may be adopted out unaltered. Municipal Code § 6.1.515 backs the mandate with a 60-day notice-to-comply before any citation, plus a mandatory microchip for exempt unaltered pets.

Key details: Mandatory age: Over 4 months old. First offense: 60-day notice to comply. Shelter adoption rule: No unaltered adoptions. Microchip: Required for exempt unaltered pets. Effective date: October 1, 2009.

Owning an unaltered dog or cat past four months without a documented exemption violates § 6.1.515(b); first-time offenders receive a 60-day written notice to comply before Clovis Animal Services issues a citation, and continued noncompliance triggers enforcement action and citation fines set in the Master Administrative Fee Schedule. An impounded unaltered animal cannot be redeemed until the owner posts the required spay/neuter deposit under § 6.1.408.

This is one of the stricter rules in Clovis's municipal code. If you are unsure whether your situation complies, it is worth checking with the city before proceeding.

Beekeeping

Clovis bars beekeeping on ordinary residential property: Municipal Code Section 9.40.040(B) allows a stand of bees only in conjunction with a permitted agricultural operation, limited to seasonal pollination, and requires large buffers, 200 feet for up to three hives, 400 feet for four to twenty, and 600 feet for twenty-one or more, from any road, residence or occupied structure other than the keeper's own.

Key details: Apiaries allowed only: With permitted agricultural operation. Buffer for 3 hives or fewer: 200 feet. Buffer for 4-20 hives: 400 feet. Buffer for 21+ hives: 600 feet. Buffer waivable by: Written neighbor permission.

Keeping a stand of bees without an underlying permitted agricultural operation, or inside the required buffer distance from a road, residence or occupied structure, violates Section 9.40.040(B) and falls under the chapter's general animal-keeping enforcement, which treats noncompliant apiaries the same as any other animal use creating a nuisance to surrounding properties. Written permission from an affected neighbor can waive the buffer as to that neighbor's property, but does not substitute for the underlying agricultural-operation requirement.

This is not one of those rules that cities tend to ignore. Clovis actively enforces its beekeeping requirements.

Pet Groomer Rules

Clovis defines pet grooming as a standalone use distinct from animal hospitals, veterinary clinics, or kennels, and allows it with an administrative use permit in the C-1, C-2, and C-3 commercial districts. Groomers must also provide one parking space for every 400 square feet of gross floor area under the city's parking standards.

Key details: Permit required: Administrative use permit (Chapter 9.62). Allowed zones: C-1, C-2, C-3 Districts. Not allowed: C-P and C-R Districts. Parking standard: 1 space per 400 sq ft. Distinct from: Animal hospitals, vet clinics, kennels.

Operating a pet grooming business in the C-P or C-R District, or without the required administrative use permit and site plan review, violates the Development Code and is a misdemeanor under § 9.92.030, carrying a fine of up to $1,000, up to six months in Fresno County jail, or both, with each day of continued operation counted as a separate offense subject to a stop-work order or administrative citation.

Veterinary Clinic Zoning

Clovis requires a conditional use permit for every veterinary clinic and animal hospital, whether proposed in the C-2 Community Commercial District or in the C-M, M-1, or M-2 industrial districts. No zoning district in the city permits the use by right, and most commercial and all residential districts exclude it entirely.

Key details: Permit required: Conditional use permit, every allowed zone. Commercial zone allowed: C-2 only (Table 2-4). Industrial zones allowed: C-M, M-1, M-2 (Table 2-6). Parking standard: 1 space/500 sq ft + boarding area. Review body: Planning Commission, Chapter 9.64.

Opening or operating a veterinary clinic or animal hospital in any district where Table 2-4 or Table 2-6 leaves the cell blank, or without an approved conditional use permit in the zones that allow it, violates the Development Code and is a misdemeanor under § 9.92.030, punishable by up to a $1,000 fine, up to six months in county jail, or both, with continued operation treated as a separate daily offense.

This is one of the stricter rules in Clovis's municipal code. If you are unsure whether your situation complies, it is worth checking with the city before proceeding.

Exotic Pets

Exotic animals prohibited under CA Fish & Game Code §2118 and CCR Title 14 §671. Ferrets, hedgehogs, monkeys, most wild animals illegal statewide. Clovis enforces state restricted species list.

Key details: State Law: CA F&G §2118, CCR 14 §671. Ferrets/Hedgehogs: ILLEGAL statewide. Max Fine: $10,000 + 6 mo jail. Permit Authority: CDFW. Legal: Common pets, most reptiles.

Illegal exotic pet: misdemeanor per CA F&G §2125, up to $10,000 fine and 6 months jail. Animal seized and either euthanized or sent to sanctuary.

Compared to other cities, Clovis takes a harder line on exotic pets. The enforcement and penalty structure reflects that.

The Bottom Line

Clovis is tougher than many cities when it comes to animal ordinances. Out of the 13 rules covered here, 5 are rated strict. If you are a homeowner, renter, or business owner in Clovis, take the time to understand these requirements before they become a problem. Most violations come with fines, and some repeat violations can escalate.

Keep in mind that Clovis can amend these rules at any council meeting. For the most current version of any rule mentioned here, check the specific ordinance page, where we track updates as they happen.