Animal Ordinances in Broomfield, CO (2026)
12 verified animal ordinances for Broomfield, Colorado, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Chickens & Livestock
Broomfield bans livestock and fowl like horses, cattle, goats and turkeys from residential and urbanized areas under Municipal Code Section 6-24-010(B), but carves out an exception for backyard chickens: up to five hens per lot, no roosters, coop and enclosure required, and a $25 license from the Department of Community Development.
Broomfield Backyard Chicken Rules
Some RestrictionsBroomfield Municipal Code § 6-24-010(B)
(B)It is unlawful for any person to keep, maintain, possess, or harbor any livestock or fowl such as but not limited to horses, mules, donkeys, burros, cattle, sheep, goats, swine, chickens, geese, ducks, or turkeys within the residential and urbanized areas of the city; provided, however, that this subsection shall be coordinated with the city zoning ordinance, wherein certain animals and numb...
Dog Leash Laws
Broomfield Municipal Code § 6-12-010 makes it unlawful for any owner to let an animal, other than an ordinary house cat, run at large in the city, and § 6-08-140 defines running at large as being off the owner's premises without direct and competent control by a leash, so dogs must be leashed whenever off the owner's own property.
Broomfield Bans Dogs Running At Large
Some RestrictionsBroomfield Municipal Code §§ 6-08-110, 6-08-140, 6-08-140(A), 6-12-010
Leash means a substantial chain, cord, rope, or similar device sufficient to hold in restraint the animal to which it is attached. ... Running at large means any animal, unless specifically excepted by this title, off the premises of the owner and not under the direct and competent control of the owner or the owner's authorized agent by means of a leash, except an animal within the automobile o...
Breed Restrictions
Broomfield has no breed-specific ban, but Municipal Code Section 6-20-010 makes it unlawful to own any animal, of any breed, that causes an unprovoked bodily injury to a person or another animal, or that repeatedly charges a fence or the end of its lead in a way that would reasonably cause fear of imminent harm.
Broomfield Dangerous Animal Attack Law
Heavy RestrictionsBroomfield Municipal Code § 6-20-010
(A)It shall be unlawful to own an animal which:(1)Causes bodily injury to a person in an unprovoked attack, whether on or off the premises of its owner;(2)Causes bodily injury to a domesticated animal or livestock in an unprovoked attack while on or off the premises of its owner; or(3)When unprovoked, repeatedly charges against a fence in an attempt to attack or charges to the end of its lead i...
Beekeeping
Broomfield bans keeping bees outside agricultural zones under Municipal Code Section 6-24-050, but allows backyard beekeeping in single-family zones with hive limits tied to lot size, from two hives on a quarter acre up to eight hives on an acre or more, plus setback, flyway-barrier and $25 licensing rules.
Broomfield Backyard Beekeeping Rules
Some RestrictionsBroomfield Municipal Code § 6-24-050
(A)It is unlawful to keep bees in any zone of the city, except agricultural zones, as a trade, profession, occupation, enterprise, operation, vocation, avocation, hobby, or activity and except as allowed under section 6-24-050(D). ... (D)Beekeeping is allowed in single family zones subject to the following restrictions:(1)Maximum number of hives per lot:(a)One-quarter acre or less: two hives;(b...
Exotic Pets
Broomfield bans owning, keeping, or selling exotic, wild or dangerous animals under Municipal Code Section 6-24-010(C), naming bears, non-domestic felines, primates, wolves, coyotes, poisonous reptiles and most Mustelidae species by name. Hybrids between wild and domestic animals count as wild animals and remain prohibited regardless of how tame they are.
Broomfield Exotic and Wild Animal Ban
Heavy RestrictionsBroomfield Municipal Code § 6-24-010(C)
(C)It is unlawful for any person to own, keep, maintain, possess, harbor, sell, or in any manner deal or traffic within the city in any living exotic, wild, dangerous, or unusual animals, whether domesticated or tamed, including, but not necessarily limited to, the following: Africanized Apis mellifera; bats of any species; bears of any species; felines, other than ordinary domesticated house c...
Pet Limits
Broomfield caps households in residential and urbanized areas at four animals over six months old under Municipal Code Section 6-24-010(A). Fish and birds do not count toward the limit, and an accessory dwelling unit is treated as part of the same dwelling, so its animals count toward the same four-pet cap.
Broomfield Four-Pet Household Limit
Some RestrictionsBroomfield Municipal Code § 6-24-010(A)
(A)It is unlawful for any person to keep, maintain, possess, or harbor at his or her dwelling within the residential and urbanized areas of the city more than a total of four animals over the age of six months. For the purpose of this subsection (A), accessory dwelling units shall be considered an extension of the principal dwelling, and the total number and types of animals permitted between t...
Cat Rules
Broomfield requires every cat over three months old to be vaccinated against rabies and registered with the city, per Municipal Code Section 6-16-010. New owners have thirty days from acquiring the cat, or thirty days after it turns three months, to get it vaccinated and registered, and failing to register carries a minimum $150 fine.
Broomfield Cat Rabies Registration Rule
Some RestrictionsBroomfield Municipal Code § 6-16-010
(A)It is unlawful for any person to own, keep, harbor, or possess any dog, cat, or ferret over the age of three months which has not been inoculated against rabies with a rabies vaccine approved by the United States Department of Agriculture and administered by a veterinarian licensed by the State of Colorado, and which has not been registered with the city as required by this chapter.(B)The ow...
Microchipping
Broomfield does not require routine pet microchipping, but Municipal Code Section 6-20-020(C)(5) requires it as a condition of returning a dangerous animal to its owner after a municipal court hearing on an unlawful attack, and Section 6-20-030(A) makes a microchip mandatory for any animal involved in even a first unprovoked attack.
Broomfield Court-Ordered Pet Microchipping
Some RestrictionsBroomfield Municipal Code § 6-20-020(C)
(C)The owner of an animal seized pursuant to this section shall be entitled to a hearing before the municipal court at the earliest date available to the court and the parties to determine if the animal shall be destroyed. ... (4)If the court determines that it is not appropriate to order the animal destroyed, the court may order the animal returned and to be kept under such circumstances as wi...
Pet Store Rules
Broomfield Municipal Code chapter 6-40 requires a city license to run a pet shop, bars outdoor runs or pens, and prohibits selling sick, injured, unweaned, or overly young animals. The annual license fee is $50, and the same kennel maintenance and inspection rules covering commercial kennels apply to pet shops.
Broomfield Pet Shop Sale and Care Rules
Some RestrictionsBroomfield Municipal Code §§ 6-40-040, 6-40-050, 6-40-060
Pet shops shall be confined in a building that is totally enclosed, and all animals shall be confined exclusively to that building. The pet shop may not have outside runs or pens, and none of the animals owned by the pet shop are to be harbored or housed outside of the building at any time for any reason. ... It is unlawful for any pet shop to sell or to offer for sale any sick or injured anima...
Pet Groomer Rules
Dog grooming is named as a permitted personal service use in Broomfield's Transitional Overlay Area District under section 17-25.1-050(A)(2), alongside beauty shops, on rural residential land next to arterial streets. It is not singled out for licensing or a special zoning permit beyond that overlay's general development standards.
Broomfield Dog Grooming Zoning Rules
Few RestrictionsBroomfield Municipal Code § 17-25.1-050(A)(2)
17-25.1-050 - Development requirements. ... (A)Permitted uses.(1)Permitted office uses shall include offices and clinics for medical and professional uses such as doctors, dentists, optometrists, insurance agents, real estate brokers, lawyers, accountants, medical and veterinary clinics, and other similar uses.(2)Permitted personal service uses shall include beauty shops, dog grooming, and othe...
Veterinary Clinic Zoning
Where a veterinary practice can operate in Broomfield depends on the zone. Small animal veterinary hospitals need discretionary special review approval in the B-2 General Business District under section 17-22-030(D), while the newer MU-1 and MU-2 mixed-use districts allow veterinarian clinics with overnight boarding by right.
Broomfield Veterinary Clinic Zoning Rules
Some RestrictionsBroomfield Municipal Code § 17-22-030(D)
17-22-030 - Permitted uses; by special review. The following uses are permitted by special review in the B-2 district: (A)Multiple-family dwellings when located on second and higher floors when processed as a Planned Unit Development;(B)Dairy processing and distribution;(C)Laundries and dry cleaning plants;(D)Small animal veterinary hospitals;(E)Plumbing, electrical, and carpenter shops; ...
Bird Protection
Broomfield Municipal Code § 6-32-040 makes it unlawful to shoot, wound, trap, or otherwise molest any song or insectivorous bird within the city, naming species from robins to redwinged blackbirds. The ban covers eggs, nests, and young too, and bars keeping any of them. Violators face the misdemeanor penalties set out in chapter 6-52.
Broomfield Song Bird Protection Ordinance
Heavy RestrictionsBroomfield Municipal Code § 6-32-040
It is unlawful for any person at any time within the city to intentionally frighten, shoot at, wound, kill, take, capture, ensnare, net, trap, or in any other manner molest or injure any song or insectivorous bird, including, but not limited to, the following: any robin, lark, whippoorwill, finch, sparrow, thrush, wren, martin, swallow, snowbird, bobolink, redwinged blackbird, crow, raven, orio...