Animal Ordinances in Fort Collins, CO (2026)
14 verified animal ordinances for Fort Collins, Colorado, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Chickens & Livestock
Fort Collins allows hens and female ducks without a farm-animal zoning designation, but caps flock size by lot size, bans roosters and drakes, and requires a Humane Society permit. Pygmy goats need a separate permit and rear-yard placement.
Fort Collins Backyard Chicken & Goat Rules
Some RestrictionsFort Collins Municipal Code § 4-117
(b) In those zone districts where the keeping of farm animals (as that term is defined in Article 7 of the Land Use Code) is not otherwise allowed, the keeping of chickens and/or ducks (poultry) shall be permitted subject to the following requirements... (2) The keeping of roosters or drakes (male ducks) is prohibited; only chicken or duck hens shall be permitted... (3) Poultry may be kept in t...
Dog Leash Laws
Fort Collins requires every pet animal except birds to be kept under restraint at all times, and it is unlawful for an owner to let one run at large in the City under Municipal Code § 4-93. Exceptions cover posted dog parks, police animals and permitted natural-area off-leash zones.
Fort Collins Animals-at-Large Leash Law
Some RestrictionsFort Collins Municipal Code § 4-93(a)
All pet animals, except birds, shall be kept under restraint. It shall be unlawful for the owner or keeper of any pet animal, except birds, to permit such animal to be at large in the City, with or without the owner or keeper's knowledge. The following shall be exempt from this prohibition: (1) Animals under the control of a public law enforcement agency. (2) Animals not under restraint in a Ci...
Breed Restrictions
Fort Collins has no breed-specific ban; instead, Municipal Code § 4-96 bars owning any "dangerous animal" unless the Humane Society or Municipal Judge has issued a permit, based on the animal's conduct rather than its breed. A dangerous-animal finding triggers annual registration, $1 million liability insurance and strict confinement rules under § 4-197.
Fort Collins Dangerous Animal Declaration Law
Significant RestrictionsFort Collins Municipal Code § 4-96(a)
It shall be unlawful for any person to own, possess, harbor, keep or maintain any dangerous animal within the City unless the Humane Society or the Municipal Judge has issued a permit for such animal consistent with the provisions contained in Subsection (c) below.
Beekeeping
Fort Collins allows backyard beekeeping but caps colony counts by tract size, requires flyway barriers near property lines, and lets the City Manager inspect apiaries and destroy noncompliant colonies as a declared nuisance.
Fort Collins Backyard Beekeeping Rules
Some RestrictionsFort Collins Municipal Code § 4-229
In each instance in which any colony is situated within twenty-five (25) feet of a public or private property line of the tract upon which the apiary is situated... the beekeeper shall establish and maintain a flyway barrier at least six (6) feet in height consisting of a solid wall, fence, dense vegetation or combination thereof that is parallel to the property line and extends ten (10) feet b...
Exotic Pets
Fort Collins bans keeping or feeding a specific list of wild and exotic animals under Municipal Code § 4-73, including bears, non-domestic cats, skunks, venomous reptiles, raccoons, deer, wolves, coyotes, foxes and primates, unless federal or state law authorizes possession. Violators face a civil infraction citation from animal control.
Fort Collins Wild and Exotic Animal Ban
Heavy RestrictionsFort Collins Municipal Code § 4-73(a)-(b)
No person shall own, feed or possess any animal for which a state license is required unless such person possesses the appropriate license from the Colorado Division of Parks and Wildlife. No person shall keep any wild or exotic animal within the City unless such possession is authorized by federal or state law. Notwithstanding the foregoing, in no event shall any person keep or feed the follow...
Wildlife Feeding
Feeding songbirds, squirrels, ducks, geese or any other wildlife inside a City natural area is unlawful without a Natural Areas Department permit, under Municipal Code § 23-193(d)(11). The Department enforces it as a petty offense, and a separate citywide ban on feeding wild geese or ducks anywhere in Fort Collins runs under § 4-73.
Fort Collins Natural Areas Feeding Ban
Some RestrictionsFort Collins Municipal Code § 23-193(d)(11)
Except as authorized by a permit obtained for such use from the Department, it shall be unlawful to: ... (11) Feed, or attempt to feed, songbirds, squirrels, ducks, geese or any other wildlife species in a natural area.
Pet Limits
Fort Collins sets no fixed numeric cap on dogs or cats; instead, Municipal Code § 4-116 bars keeping more pet animals than can be "properly maintained in a healthy condition" without creating a health hazard or a nuisance to neighbors. Chickens and ducks get their own numeric caps under § 4-117.
Fort Collins Pet Animal Quantity Limit
Light RestrictionsFort Collins Municipal Code § 4-116
In no event shall any person keep at his or her premises more pet animals than can be properly maintained in a healthy condition without presenting a health or safety hazard to the owners, keeper or others and without constituting a nuisance to the occupants of neighboring properties.
Cat Rules
Fort Collins requires every dog or cat owner to license their pet within 14 days of taking possession, under Municipal Code § 4-31. The license comes from the City or the Larimer Humane Society, must be renewed annually, and requires proof of rabies vaccination. New residents get a 30-day grace period, and kittens and puppies four months or younger are exempt.
Fort Collins Cat and Dog Licensing Law
Some RestrictionsFort Collins Municipal Code § 4-31(a)
The owner or keeper of any dog or cat kept within the City shall secure from the City or the Humane Society, within fourteen (14) days of acquiring possession of said dog or cat, a license for the keeping of the same, which license shall at all times be kept current by said owner or keeper. It is a defense to a charge of violating this Section that: (1) The owner or keeper of the dog or cat had...
Mandatory Spay/Neuter
Fort Collins has no citywide mandatory spay/neuter law for ordinary pets. The only spay/neuter mandate applies narrowly to animals under a permanent Dangerous Animal Permit, which must be altered within ten days of the permit becoming permanent.
Fort Collins Dangerous-Animal Spay/Neuter Rule
Light RestrictionsFort Collins Municipal Code § 4-197(a)(1)k
k. that the animal be spayed or neutered within ten days of the Dangerous Animal Permit being made permanent, and documentation provided to the Larimer Humane Society;
Microchipping
Fort Collins does not require microchipping for ordinary pets. Microchipping is mandatory only for animals under a Dangerous Animal Permit, where a licensed veterinarian must implant an ID chip and register it with the Larimer Humane Society.
Fort Collins Dangerous-Animal Microchip Rule
Light RestrictionsFort Collins Municipal Code § 4-197(a)(1)j
j. that the owner or keeper have a licensed veterinarian implant an electronic identification microchip in the animal and provide the information contained in the microchip to the Larimer Humane Society;
Pet Store Rules
Fort Collins bars retail stores from selling, adopting out, or giving away cats and dogs on their premises, an adoption-only rule that lets stores host rescue and shelter animals instead of stocking their own.
Fort Collins Retail Dog & Cat Sale Ban
Heavy RestrictionsFort Collins Municipal Code § 4-122
(a) No retail store or its owner, operator or employees shall sell, deliver, offer for sale or adoption, advertise for sale of, barter, auction, give away, or otherwise transfer or dispose of cats or dogs. (b) This prohibition shall not apply to lawfully operated hobby breeders, animal rescue organizations, and animal shelters.
Veterinary Clinic Zoning
Fort Collins requires every small animal veterinary clinic or hospital to operate inside a fully enclosed, soundproof building, hold noise to 65 decibels at the property line, and eliminate offensive odor, under Section 3.8.5 of the Transitional Land Use Code. Boarding is banned except when medically necessary for a patient already receiving treatment.
Fort Collins Veterinary Clinic Zoning Rules
Some RestrictionsFort Collins Transitional Land Use Code § 3.8.5
(A)All facilities of a small animal veterinary clinic or a small animal veterinary hospital, including all treatment rooms, cages, pens, kennels and exercise runs, shall be maintained within a completely enclosed, soundproof building.(B)All such veterinary clinics and hospitals shall be designed and constructed in a manner that eliminates any emission of odor offensive to persons owning, occupy...
Bird Protection
The entire City of Fort Collins is a designated wild bird sanctuary, and it is unlawful to shoot, capture, trap, or otherwise harm wild birds, their nests, eggs or young without a Police Chief permit issued for a genuine nuisance situation.
Fort Collins Wild Bird Sanctuary Protections
Significant RestrictionsFort Collins Municipal Code § 4-157
It shall be unlawful for any person at any time in the City to shoot at, wound, kill, capture, ensnare, net, trap or in any other manner molest or injure any wild bird or in any manner molest or damage a nest with eggs, or injure the young of any such bird. The Chief of Police shall have authority to grant or deny a permit for the killing, capturing or molestation of nuisance birds with the con...
Wildlife Rescue Permits
Fort Collins doesn't issue a dedicated wildlife-rescue permit; it treats a wildlife rescue and education center as a zoning use requiring discretionary approval. In the Urban Estate (U-E) District, Section 4.2(B)(3)(b) of the Transitional Land Use Code lists 'wildlife rescue and education centers' among uses that need full Planning and Zoning Board review rather than administrative sign-off.
Fort Collins Wildlife Rescue Center Zoning
Significant RestrictionsFort Collins Transitional Land Use Code § 4.2(B)(3)(b)
(3)The following uses are permitted in the U-E District, subject to Planning and Zoning Board review:(a)Residential Uses:1.Residential cluster developments.(b)Institutional/Civic/Public Uses:1.Public and private schools for elementary, intermediate and high school education.2.Places of worship or assembly.3.Golf courses.4.Wildlife rescue and education centers.
Looking for Larimer County county-wide rules?
County ordinances apply to unincorporated areas and may supplement Fort Collins city rules.
Animal Ordinances in Larimer County →