Animal Ordinances in Longmont, CO (2026)
9 verified animal ordinances for Longmont, Colorado, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Chickens & Livestock
Longmont's animal code allows livestock only 'as applicable zoning ordinances permit'; the land development code requires at least a 1-acre parcel with 1 acre of open pasture before livestock keeping is allowed.
Longmont Livestock Zoning Rules
Significant RestrictionsLongmont Municipal Code § 15.04.030(D)(1)(a)-(d)
a.Parcels with agricultural uses shall be at least one acre.b.At least one acre of open pasture area is required for livestock.c.No more than one principal dwelling shall be allowed on each parcel.d.Structures for keeping farm animals shall be set back from the property line a minimum of 20 feet.e.The maximum number of livestock shall not exceed one animal unit per one acre of open area. Animal...
Dog Leash Laws
Longmont dogs must stay on the owner's property unless leashed with a chain or leash no more than 25 feet, held or tied to the person with them; off-leash use is limited to designated dog parks and specific golf-course/park exceptions.
Longmont dog leash and restraint law
Some RestrictionsLongmont Municipal Code § 7.04.200
Every person owning or having charge, care, custody or control of any dog, of any age, shall keep such dog exclusively upon his or her own premises, provided that the dog may be off-premises if it is under the control of a competent person and restrained by a substantial chain or leash not exceeding 25 feet in length. Control, as used in this section, means that the chain or leash which is atta...
Breed Restrictions
Longmont has no breed-specific dog ban; instead it declares any animal an 'aggressive animal', and can order it destroyed, based solely on its bite or attack behavior, regardless of breed.
Longmont Bans Behavior, Not Breed
Light RestrictionsLongmont Municipal Code § 7.04.190(B)
The term "aggressive animal" means an animal that bites or attacks a human or another animal, or approaches a human in an apparent attitude of attack, whether or not an attack actually occurs. It is an affirmative defense that the victim specifically intended to provoke the animal. It is an affirmative defense that the victim was trespassing on the animal owner's property with intent to commit ...
Beekeeping
Longmont caps backyard beekeeping at four hives per property: keeping more than four "stands" of bees at one place is a declared public nuisance under Longmont Municipal Code § 9.04.020, subject to the city's nuisance-abatement notice and correction process rather than a stand-alone citation.
Longmont's Four-Hive Beekeeping Limit
Some RestrictionsLongmont Municipal Code § 9.04.020
The keeping of bees in any greater number than four stands at any one place is a nuisance.
Exotic Pets
Longmont bans keeping any animal in the city except household pets, zoning-permitted livestock, state/federally licensed birds of prey, licensed wildlife-rehab animals, and permitted backyard chicken hens: exotic and wild animals are off the list.
Longmont's Exotic Pet Ban
Heavy RestrictionsLongmont Municipal Code § 7.04.130(A)
It is unlawful to keep, harbor, care for or possess any animal within the city except: 1. Household pets; 2. Large animals and livestock, as applicable zoning ordinances permit; 3. Birds of prey in the possession of handlers licensed by the state or federal government; 4. State wildlife receiving care and treatment by a wildlife rehabilitator currently licensed by the state division of wildlife...
Cat Rules
Longmont requires every cat over six months old to carry a city license, renewed annually by February 1st, and every cat over four months old to be current on rabies vaccination. Longmont Municipal Code § 7.04.020(A) sets the license duty; § 7.04.040(A) sets the vaccination duty, both enforced by the police department's animal control officers.
Longmont Cat License and Rabies Rules
Some RestrictionsLongmont Municipal Code § 7.04.020(A)
It is unlawful for any person to own, keep, harbor or possess any dog, miniature pot-bellied pig or cat over the age of six months which has not been licensed.
Mandatory Spay/Neuter
Longmont requires proof a licensed miniature pot-bellied pig has been spayed or neutered, unless a veterinarian certifies that doing so would harm the animal's health; dogs and cats face no citywide spay/neuter mandate.
Longmont's Pig Spay/Neuter Rule
Some RestrictionsLongmont Municipal Code § 7.04.020(F)(2)
That the animal has been spayed or neutered, unless the owner provides the clerk a letter from a veterinarian, licensed in the state, that such spaying or neutering would be detrimental to the health of the animal; and3.Of the inspection required in section 7.04.040.B. (Code 1993, § 7.04.020; Code 2009, § 7.04.020; Ord. No. O-88-65, § 1; Ord. No. O-93-29, § 1; Ord. No. O-94-58, § 1; Ord. No. O...
Veterinary Clinic Zoning
Longmont treats veterinary clinics and hospitals like kennels for zoning purposes, keeping outdoor runs and cremation activities well clear of residential lots or requiring a conditional use permit.
Longmont veterinary clinic zoning rules
Some RestrictionsLongmont Municipal Code § 15.04.030.D.3
3.Veterinary clinic or hospital.a.A veterinary clinic or hospital shall comply with the same requirements for a kennel in subsection D.2 of this section, except that veterinary clinics or hospitals in the MU-N, MU-D, and MU-R zoning districts shall not include any outdoor runs, remains disposal, or other activities.
Bird Protection
Longmont designates its entire city limits a bird sanctuary and makes it unlawful to trap, hunt, shoot or molest any bird or wild fowl, or to rob nests, with a narrow police-supervised exception for nuisance starling flocks.
Longmont bird sanctuary protection law
Significant RestrictionsLongmont Municipal Code §§ 7.04.220, 7.04.230
The entire area embraced within the corporate limits of the city is designated as a bird sanctuary. (Code 1993, § 7.04.220; Code 2009, § 7.04.220; Ord. No. O-88-65, § 1; Ord. No. O-2024-35, § 1, 5-28-2024) Sec. 7.04.230. - Interference with birds or fowl unlawful; destruction of nuisance or menace birds. A.It is unlawful to trap, hunt, shoot or attempt to shoot or molest, in any manner, ...
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