Redding's Animal Ordinances: The Rules That Matter

Every city handles animal ordinances a little differently. In Redding, California, there are 12 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.

Pet Limits

Redding caps most households at six dogs or six cats, or any combination totaling six, once each animal passes four months old, unless the owner holds a kennel license under RMC § 7.04.150. A single pot-bellied pig is also allowed, but it counts toward that same six-animal ceiling alongside any dogs and cats.

Key details: Household cap: 6 dogs/cats combined, over 4 months old. Pig limit: 1 pot-bellied pig counts toward the 6. Over the cap: Requires a kennel license. Grandfather clause: Pre-ordinance owners exempt if animals stay licensed.

Keeping more than six dogs or cats combined, or more than one pot-bellied pig, without a kennel license violates Section 7.04.150 of the Redding Municipal Code and is enforced as an infraction under Chapter 7.04's animal control provisions, subject to correction or a kennel-license application to bring the household into compliance.

Bird Protection

Within Redding's two designated wild bird sanctuaries, Turtle Bay and Turtle Bay East, it is unlawful at any time to hunt, trap, kill, or destroy any bird or to molest or damage a nest or eggs, under Chapter 7.24, though the city council can order pest-bird control when a species becomes a nuisance.

Key details: Protected areas: Turtle Bay and Turtle Bay East. Prohibited acts: Hunt, kill, trap, or destroy any bird. Nest protection: No molesting or damaging nests or eggs. Nuisance exception: Council may order pest-bird control. Signage: City must post sanctuary boundary signs.

Hunting, trapping, killing, or destroying a bird within a designated sanctuary, or damaging a nest or its eggs, violates § 7.24.030. Because Chapter 7.24 sets no separate fine, the citywide default in § 1.12.020 applies: a misdemeanor punishable by up to a $1,000 fine and six months in county jail, unless the city attorney reduces the charge to an infraction carrying escalating $100, $200, or $500 fines.

Compared to other cities, Redding takes a harder line on bird protection. The enforcement and penalty structure reflects that.

Pet Groomer Rules

Redding zones pet grooming under its 'Animal Sales and Services' use classification, which also covers boarding and small-animal medical care run as a commercial business. Section 18.60.040(B) defines the use, and Schedule 18.33.020-A permits it outright in most commercial districts while capping it to 5,000 square feet in Neighborhood Commercial zones and banning outdoor kennels next to residential districts.

Key details: Use classification: Animal Sales and Services, § 18.60.040(B). Neighborhood Commercial cap: 5,000 sq ft or less (L8). Permitted outright: SC, RC, GC, HC districts. GC-VR subdistrict: Site development permit required. Outdoor kennels: Prohibited next to residential districts.

Operating a grooming or boarding business in a zoning district where the schedule does not list 'Animal Sales and Services' as permitted, exceeding the 5,000-square-foot small-scale cap in a Neighborhood Commercial location, or running outdoor kennels adjacent to a residential district is a zoning code violation subject to code enforcement action and correction under the city's general municipal code penalty provisions.

Exotic Pets

Redding Zoning Ordinance Section 18.43.040(I) provides that the keeping of exotic or wild animals may be permitted only subject to issuance of a site development permit and any required California Fish and Wildlife permits. California Code of Regulations Title 14 Section 671 separately classifies a wide range of species as restricted and requires a permit from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) before they may be imported, transported, or possessed in California: many common exotics (ferrets, hedgehogs, many primates, large carnivores) are prohibited or restricted under state law.

Key details: Local Permit: Site development permit required (18.43.040(I)). State Restricted List: 14 CCR Section 671. State Permit Authority: California Dept. of Fish and Wildlife. Ferrets, Hedgehogs: Restricted statewide: generally prohibited as pets. Standard Household Pets: Allowed under 18.43.040(A).

Possessing an exotic or wild animal in Redding without a site development permit is a zoning violation enforced by Code Enforcement with administrative citations under RMC Chapter 1.13 and abatement orders requiring removal of the animal. Possessing a restricted species under 14 CCR Section 671 without a CDFW permit is a separate offense enforced by CDFW Wildlife Officers under California Fish and Game Code Sections 2118-2118.4 with fines and seizure; animals seized for public-safety reasons are placed with CDFW-authorized facilities at the owner's expense.

Veterinary Clinic Zoning

Redding zones veterinary care under two classifications in its commercial districts: "Animal Sales and Services," permitted in Shopping Center, Regional Commercial, General Commercial and Heavy Commercial zones, and "Large Animal Veterinary Services," permitted only in General Commercial and Heavy Commercial. Outdoor kennels are barred wherever the use sits next to a residential district.

Key details: Animal Sales & Services: Permitted in SC, RC, GC, HC. NC district cap: Small-scale, 5,000 sq ft or less. Large Animal Vet Services: Permitted only in GC and HC. Outdoor kennels: Banned next to residential districts. Governing schedule: RMC Schedule 18.33.020-A.

Operating a veterinary office or animal-sales-and-services business in a commercial district where the table marks it "-" (not allowed), exceeding the 5,000-square-foot small-scale cap for the L8 designation in an NC district, or keeping animals in an outdoor kennel next to a residential district in violation of the schedule's additional-regulations note, is a Title 18 zoning violation. The development services director enforces the zoning code's use-table restrictions under Chapter 18.25, which voids any permit or license issued in conflict with Title 18's provisions.

Dog Leash Laws

Letting any animal run loose in Redding is a declared nuisance and a misdemeanor under RMC § 7.04.050, unless the animal stays on private property under its owner's exclusive control or inside a city-designated off-leash dog exercise area. Animal control can pursue the violation criminally or through Chapter 1.13's administrative citation process.

Key details: Classification: Misdemeanor under RMC § 7.04.170. Exceptions: Owner's private property or dog exercise area. Enforcement paths: Criminal charge or Chapter 1.13 citation. Related duty: Secure enclosure required under § 7.04.080.

Running at large is a misdemeanor under Sections 7.04.050 and 7.04.170 of the Redding Municipal Code, and the city can instead, or additionally, issue an administrative citation under Chapter 1.13; Redding's animal control officers and police enforce both tracks.

Cat Rules

Redding bars anyone from feeding cats outdoors by leaving food on the ground or in containers on public property, and even on private land food can only go out for cats the household actually owns, in containers brought in overnight, under RMC § 7.04.060(B). Cats, unlike dogs, can be kept outside without a securing enclosure under § 7.04.080.

Key details: Feeding limit: Only cats the household owns or keeps. Public spaces: No ground or container feeding allowed. Overnight rule: Food containers cannot stay out overnight. Enclosure exception: Cats may be kept outside unlike other animals. Offense level: Infraction, not misdemeanor.

Feeding cats on the ground or in open containers in a public space, or maintaining a feeding station for cats a household does not own, is an infraction under Section 7.04.170 of the Redding Municipal Code, enforced by Redding animal control officers under Chapter 7.04's nuisance provisions.

Chickens & Livestock

Redding lets residents keep chickens, ducks, geese and other fowl, but only 40 feet from any occupied dwelling other than their own, 15 feet from side and rear lines, and 50 feet from the front line, under RMC § 7.04.120. Roosters over three months old, peafowl and guinea fowl are banned citywide under § 7.04.130.

Key details: Dwelling setback: 40 feet from another occupied dwelling. Side/rear setback: 15 feet from side and rear lines. Front setback: 50 feet from front property line. Rooster rule: Banned once over 3 months old. Peafowl/guinea fowl: Prohibited citywide, no exception.

Keeping fowl or gnawing mammals inside the 40/15/50-foot setbacks, keeping a rooster over three months old, or keeping any peafowl or guinea fowl violates Sections 7.04.120 and 7.04.130 of the Redding Municipal Code and is enforced as an infraction, since the chapter's misdemeanor list in Section 7.04.170 does not include these sections.

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

Breed Restrictions

Redding does not have a breed-specific dog ordinance and cannot enact one. California Food and Agricultural Code Section 31683 expressly preempts local breed bans: cities and counties may not adopt dog-control ordinances that are specific to any breed. Redding may regulate dangerous behavior on an individual-dog basis under the state dangerous and vicious dog statutes at Food & Ag Code Sections 31601-31683, but no breed (including pit bulls, Rottweilers, and German shepherds) may be singled out for prohibition or numerical restriction.

Key details: Local BSL: None: preempted by state law. Preemption Statute: CA Food & Ag Code Section 31683. Allowed Local Rule: Behavior-based dangerous-dog hearings. Mandatory Spay/Neuter by Breed: Allowed but not adopted in Redding. Dangerous Dog Statute: Food & Ag Code 31601-31683.

Because breed-specific local ordinances are state-preempted, no Redding citation can be issued solely based on a dog's breed. Behavior-based potentially dangerous or vicious dog determinations under Food & Ag Code Sections 31621-31626 carry orders for enclosure, posting, microchipping, and (for vicious dogs) potential destruction. Owners of vicious dogs may be prohibited from owning, possessing, or controlling any dog for up to three years under Section 31645. Local citations issued contrary to Section 31683 are reversible.

Pet Store Rules

Redding does not ban pet stores from selling dogs, cats or other animals: RMC § 7.04.160 only bars selling, bartering or giving away animals on streets, sidewalks, trails, or in front of stores and shopping centers, and expressly protects licensed pet shops and feed stores that sell animals on their own premises.

Key details: What's banned: Curbside/sidewalk/storefront animal sales, not pet stores. Pet shop status: Licensed pet shops expressly exempt. Covers: Dogs, cats, poultry, rabbits and other animals. Applies to businesses too: Stores can't allow sales on their lot.

Selling, bartering or giving away an animal on a public street, sidewalk, trail, or in front of or on the premises of a store or shopping center violates Section 7.04.160 of the Redding Municipal Code and is enforced as an infraction; licensed pet shops and feed stores selling on their own premises are not in violation.

If you are coming from a city with tighter rules, you will find Redding gives residents more flexibility on pet store rules.

Microchipping

Redding has no general pet microchip mandate, but once a dog is formally classified dangerous after an administrative hearing, its owner has ten business days to implant an identification microchip, one of more than a dozen mandatory conditions the city can impose under RMC § 7.13.110.

Key details: Trigger: Only after a formal 'dangerous dog' finding. Deadline: 10 business days to microchip. Not general: No citywide pet microchip mandate. Related duty: Also requires spay/neuter within 10 business days. Penalty: Misdemeanor for violating conditions, § 7.13.150.

Failing to microchip a dangerous dog within the ten-business-day deadline, or violating any other condition set under § 7.13.110(A), exposes the owner to enforcement action, and any violation of the written maintenance order or of Chapter 7.13 generally is a misdemeanor under § 7.13.150. Hiding, releasing, or transferring the dog without the administrative hearings board's written authorization is independently a misdemeanor under § 7.13.110(B).

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

Beekeeping

Redding lets residents keep up to three bee colonies at home if the lot has at least 6,000 square feet, but the keeper must first get a zoning clearance from the Development Services Director and sign an affidavit agreeing to meet hive height, registration, and barrier standards under Chapter 7.08.

Key details: Colony limit: 3 colonies on a 6,000+ sq ft lot. Hive height: Max 6 feet including stand or rack. Registration: Shasta County Ag Commissioner, Food & Ag Code § 29040. Barrier required: Min. 6-foot flight dispersion barrier. Commercial setback: 100 ft from streets, 300 ft from homes.

Keeping bees without the required zoning clearance and affidavit, exceeding the three-colony residential limit, building hives over six feet tall, skipping registration with the Shasta County Agricultural Commissioner, or knowingly keeping Africanized bees all violate Chapter 7.08. The city can require beekeeping to stop immediately upon notice, cite and fine the keeper under Chapters 1.12 through 1.14, and revoke any related use permit under Chapter 18.11.

The Bottom Line

Redding is tougher than many cities when it comes to animal ordinances. Out of the 12 rules covered here, 3 are rated strict. If you are a homeowner, renter, or business owner in Redding, take the time to understand these requirements before they become a problem. Most violations come with fines, and some repeat violations can escalate.

These rules come from Redding's publicly available municipal code. For complete penalty schedules, exemption details, and answers to common questions, see the individual ordinance pages throughout this guide.