Animal Ordinances in Burlington, NC (2026)
10 verified animal ordinances for Burlington, North Carolina, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Chickens & Livestock
In the City of Burlington, North Carolina, City Code Sections 6-11 and 6-13 flatly prohibit keeping livestock and fowl, including chickens, ducks, geese and turkeys, anywhere inside the corporate limits. A grandfather clause lets pre-existing livestock stay only until the use lapses for thirty days.
Backyard Chickens and Livestock Banned in Burlington
Heavy RestrictionsBurlington City Code §§ 6-11, 6-13
Sec. 6-11 - Keeping of livestock prohibited. Keeping of livestock, as defined herein, shall be prohibited within the corporate limits of the city, However, any livestock being maintained as of the date of re-adoption of this chapter shall be permitted to continue until the use is discontinued for thirty (30) days or more. Thereafter, such use shall not be allowed to resume. ... Sec. 6-13. - Kee...
Dog Leash Laws
In the City of Burlington, North Carolina, City Code Section 6-20 bans letting a dog run loose on any public street, sidewalk or park, or on someone else's property, and requires dogs off their owner's premises to be on a chain, leash or other adequate physical restraint.
Dogs Running at Large Banned in Burlington
Some RestrictionsBurlington City Code §§ 6-20, 6-65, 6-67
(a)No person owning or having possession, charge, custody or control of any animal dog shall cause, permit or allow the animal to stray or in any manner to run at large in or upon any public street, sidewalk or park or upon the property of another.(b)Every person owning or having possession, charge, care, custody, or control of any dog shall keep such dog exclusively upon his own premises; prov...
Breed Restrictions
Burlington does not ban dog breeds by name. Instead, the Animal Services Director declares individual dogs "dangerous" or "potentially dangerous" under City Code Section 6-22, and any such dog is prohibited within the city unless its owner obtains a confinement permit covering vaccination, sterilization, microchipping, secure enclosure, and mandatory muzzled restraint whenever the dog leaves its own property.
Burlington Dangerous Dog Permit Rules
Significant RestrictionsBurlington City Code § 6-22
(a)Prohibited without permit. Dogs declared "dangerous" or "potentially dangerous," as defined in section 6-2 of this chapter are prohibited in the city without a permit.(b)Determination. The animal services director shall determine whether a dog shall be declared dangerous or potentially dangerous using the definitions of those terms in this chapter. The animal services director shall issue a ...
Exotic Pets
In the City of Burlington, North Carolina, City Code Section 6-14 bans keeping, possessing or controlling any exotic or wild animal within the city, and the section expressly states that no permit exists to authorize one. Violating it is a Level III civil offense.
Exotic and Wild Animal Ban in Burlington, NC
Heavy RestrictionsBurlington City Code § 6-14
Sec. 6-14. - Keeping of exotic or wild animals prohibited. (a)Unlawful act. It shall be unlawful for any person to keep, maintain, possess or have under his or her control within the city any exotic or wild animal as defined in this chapter.(b)Permits not authorized. Permits for the keeping or maintenance of exotic or wild animals are not authorized. ... Exotic or wild animal. ... An animal tha...
Pet Limits
In the City of Burlington, North Carolina, City Code Section 6-15 caps every household at three dogs twelve weeks or older, with duplexes, triplexes and boardinghouses each counted under their own household rules. Violating the cap is a Level I civil offense.
Burlington's Three-Dog-Per-Household Limit
Some RestrictionsBurlington City Code §§ 6-15, 6-65, 6-67
Sec. 6-15. - Limit on number of dogs per household. Dog owners may keep, maintain or harbor no more than three (3) dogs aged twelve (12) weeks old or older per household. By way of example, a duplex is two (2) households. A triplex is three (3) households. A boardinghouse is one household, regardless of the number of rooms for rent or occupants. ... (c)The severity of violations of the provisio...
Cat Rules
In the City of Burlington, North Carolina, City Code Section 6-21 requires every cat owner to have the animal vaccinated against rabies, and Section 6-44(d) requires cats adopted from the city shelter to be spayed or neutered first. Burlington has no separate cat-at-large or leash requirement.
Cat Vaccination and Adoption Rules in Burlington
Some RestrictionsBurlington City Code §§ 6-21, 6-44(d)
Sec. 6-21. - Vaccinations against rabies. It shall be unlawful for the owner of any dog, cat, or ferret to keep, maintain or harbor such animal unless it shall have been vaccinated by a licensed veterinarian with anti-rabies vaccination as required by G.S. 130A-185. ... (d)Spaying or neutering required. Dogs and cats released for adoption from the shelter shall be spayed or neutered. Such anima...
Mandatory Spay/Neuter
Burlington does not require every dog or cat owner to sterilize their pet. City Code Section 6-44(d) instead requires the animal shelter to spay or neuter every dog and cat it releases for adoption before a new owner may take it home.
Burlington Shelter Adoption Spay/Neuter Rule
Some RestrictionsBurlington City Code § 6-44(d)
(d)Spaying or neutering required. Dogs and cats released for adoption from the shelter shall be spayed or neutered. Such animal may be adopted by the first such person who meets adoption requirements and pays the adoption fee.
Microchipping
Burlington has no general pet-microchipping mandate. But under City Code Section 6-22(d), a dog declared dangerous or potentially dangerous cannot get the confinement permit that keeps it legal in the city unless it is implanted with a microchip that is registered with the Animal Services Department.
Burlington Dangerous Dog Microchip Rule
Some RestrictionsBurlington City Code § 6-22(d)(2)c
(d)Permit for confinement of dangerous of potentially dangerous dogs. The animal services department shall issue a permit for a declared dangerous or potentially dangerous dog only upon submission of a complete, verified application, a finding by the director or his/her designee that required arrangements for housing of the dog and other public health and safety provisions are in effect, paymen...
Coyote Management
Burlington has no citywide coyote hazing or feeding ordinance; City Code § 23-2(b)(4) only carves a narrow exception to the general firearms-discharge ban for wildlife depredation permits at the Alamance-Burlington Airport that name deer, coyotes and geese as the targeted intrusive wildlife.
Burlington NC Coyote Depredation Permit Rule
Light RestrictionsBurlington City Code § 23-2(b)(4)
(a)No person shall discharge or shoot a gun, air rifle, air pistol or other kind of firearm or similar implement within the city limits. ... (b)This section shall not apply to: ... (4)Any person authorized to discharge firearms upon designated property of the Alamance-Burlington Airport Authority pursuant to permission granted by the chief of police and applicable guidelines, permissions and pe...
Wildlife Rescue Permits
In the City of Burlington, North Carolina, City Code Section 6-14(c) exempts wildlife rehabilitators holding proper permits from the citywide ban on keeping exotic or wild animals, but only if they meet state and federal confinement rules and keep the animals off public streets and sidewalks.
Wildlife Rehabilitator Exemption in Burlington, NC
Some RestrictionsBurlington City Code § 6-14(c)
(c)Exempt purposes.(1)Application. This section shall not apply to exotic or wild animals kept for the following exempt purposes: lawfully operated and located pet shops, zoological gardens, and scientific research laboratories, veterinarians harboring such animals for purposes of providing professional medical treatment, wildlife rehabilitators with proper permits, religious displays, or exhib...
Looking for Alamance County county-wide rules?
County ordinances apply to unincorporated areas and may supplement Burlington city rules.
Animal Ordinances in Alamance County →