Animal Ordinances in Riverside, CA (2026)
12 verified animal ordinances for Riverside, California, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Chickens & Livestock
Riverside's Municipal Code caps non-commercial poultry keeping at five birds in RE and R-1 single-family zones, with a coop set back at least ten feet from any neighboring residence and an outright ban on crowing fowl. Rural RR, RA-5 and RC zones allow far larger flocks, plus rabbits and even roosters, once housing sits 50 to 100 feet from neighbors.
Riverside Backyard Chicken & Poultry Rules
Some RestrictionsCity of Riverside, CA, Municipal Code § 19.455.030(B)(1)
The non-commercial keeping of poultry is permitted subject to the following:a.Not more than five poultry shall be permitted at any time.b.A coop, shelter or other permanent structure shall be provided a minimum of ten feet from any neighboring residence in addition to the minimum standards provided in Chapter 19.440 (Accessory Buildings and Structures).c.The keeping of crowing fowl as defined i...
Dog Leash Laws
Riverside bans letting a dog run at large on any street, public place, unenclosed lot, or another person's property without permission. RMC § 8.04.050 requires the dog be restrained by 'a substantial chain or leash' and under a competent person's control any time it's off its own owner's enclosed property. On-duty official police dogs are the only exception.
Riverside Dog Leash & At-Large Law
Some RestrictionsRiverside, CA Municipal Code § 8.04.050 (Ord. 4803 § 4, 1980)
8.04.050 - Leash laws—Dogs. No person owning or having charge, care, custody or control of any dog shall, either intentionally or unintentionally, cause, permit or allow the same to be or run at large upon any street or other public place, or upon any unenclosed lot or place in the City or upon the private property of another without permission of the person owning or in possession of such prop...
Breed Restrictions
California Food & Agricultural Code §31683 prohibits cities and counties from banning specific breeds, but allows breed-specific spay/neuter rules. Riverside County Code §6.08.125, which applies inside the City of Riverside through RCDAS enforcement, requires every pit bull over 4 months old to be spayed or neutered.
Breed Restrictions: Mandatory Pit Bull Spay/Neuter (Riverside County §6.08.125)
Some RestrictionsCalifornia Food and Agricultural Code Section 31683
Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to prevent a city or county from adopting or enforcing its own program for the control of potentially dangerous or vicious dogs that may incorporate all, part, or none of this chapter, or that may punish a violation of this chapter as a misdemeanor or may impose a more restrictive program to control potentially dangerous or vicious dogs. Except as prov...
Beekeeping
Backyard beekeeping is legal in Riverside, but placement is tightly geo-fenced under RMC §8.20.060: apiaries must sit at least 300 feet from any public street, road or freeway and 500 feet from any house or building unless that occupant consents in writing. A visible ID sign and landowner permission are also mandatory.
Riverside Apiary Setback and Registration Rules
Some RestrictionsRiverside Municipal Code § 8.20.060
A. Permission. Prior to locating or maintaining an apiary, written permission of the property owner or occupant shall be obtained if the apiary is located on a property not owned or leased by the person responsible for the apiary. B. Distance from public roads. All apiaries owned or kept within the City of Riverside shall be located at least 300 feet from any and all public streets, roads and f...
Exotic Pets
Riverside bars keeping a lion, tiger, bear, chimpanzee, gorilla, cougar, wolf, coyote, fox, lynx, poisonous reptile, or other dangerous or carnivorous wild animal on residentially zoned property. RMC § 8.04.110 allows it only with a permit from the Animal Control Director, who must find adequate safeguards exist and that the animal won't become a nuisance to neighbors.
Riverside Wild & Dangerous Animal Ban
Significant RestrictionsRiverside, CA Municipal Code § 8.04.110 (Ord. 7362 § 1, 2017)
8.04.110 - Wild animals and reptiles. No person shall have, keep or maintain, or have in his possession or under his control on any residentially-zoned property any lion, tiger, bear, chimpanzee, gorilla, cougar, mountain lion, badger, wolf, coyote, fox, lynx or any poisonous reptile or any other dangerous or carnivorous wild animal or reptile; provided, however, such animals may be permitted o...
Pet Limits
Riverside doesn't cap pets by a simple headcount in the noise or nuisance code: it does it through zoning. Keep five or more dogs, or ten or more cats, four months or older, on residential property for personal use and your home becomes a 'residential kennel' or 'residential cattery' under RMC §19.910, which triggers a mandatory Animal Control Director license under §8.18.020.
Riverside Kennel License Triggers at 5 Dogs, 10 Cats
Some RestrictionsRiverside Municipal Code § 8.18.020(A); § 19.910.120 (Kennel-Residential); § 19.910.040 (Cattery-Residential)
Kennel-residential means any building, structure, enclosure or premises located in a residential zone whereupon, or within which five or more dogs, four months of age or older, are kept or maintained only for the personal use of persons living on the premises... Cattery-residential means any building, structure, enclosure or premises located in a residential zone whereupon, or within which, ten...
Cat Rules
Riverside has no leash law or at-large restriction for cats. RMC §8.04.080 bans letting 'any animal, except a cat' roam unsupervised in public: the carve-out means free-roaming cats aren't a Code violation the way a loose dog is under the separate leash law at §8.04.050. Cat owners still owe a poop-scoop duty under §8.04.150.
Riverside Cats Are Exempt from At-Large Law
Light RestrictionsRiverside Municipal Code § 8.04.080; § 8.04.150
No person owning or having possession, charge, custody or control of any animal, except a cat, shall cause, permit or allow such animal to be at large upon any street, lane, alley, court or other public place unless under the immediate effective physical control of a competent person or under the immediate vocal control of said person; provided, however, the provisions of Section 8.04.050 of th...
Mandatory Spay/Neuter
Riverside requires every dog and cat over seven months old to be spayed or neutered under RMC §8.21.010: a citywide baseline separate from the pit-bull-specific mandate. Dog owners can instead obtain an annual 'unaltered dog license'; cat owners get no such license option and must sterilize or document infertility.
Riverside Mandatory Spay/Neuter for Dogs, Cats
Heavy RestrictionsRiverside Municipal Code § 8.21.010(A)
Requirement. No person may own, keep, or harbor an unaltered and unspayed dog or cat over the age of seven months in violation of this section. An owner or custodian of an unaltered dog must have the dog spayed or neutered, or provide a certificate of sterility, or obtain an unaltered dog license in accordance with this chapter. An owner or custodian of an unaltered cat must have the animal spa...
Coyote Management
Feeding a coyote or burro you don't own is illegal anywhere in Riverside. RMC §8.17.010 bans providing food to any coyote or burro not under your ownership or legal possession, with one narrow exception for an injured or unweaned animal you're actively getting picked up by the City. Section 8.17.020 additionally authorizes the City and its animal-control contractor to use 'all legal means' to control and reduce coyote and burro numbers.
Riverside Coyote and Burro Feeding Ban
Significant RestrictionsRiverside Municipal Code §§ 8.17.010, 8.17.020
A. Except as provided herein, no person shall feed or in any manner provide food for any coyote and/or burro which is not under the ownership or legal possession of such person. B. A person may feed and provide food for a coyote and/or burro which is trapped, unweaned or injured during that period of time after said person notifies the Police Department or animal control agency until said anima...
Pet Groomer Rules
Pet grooming businesses (without overnight or long-term boarding) are permitted by right in Riverside's Office, Commercial, and Mixed-Use zones under the Permitted Uses Table, need a Minor Conditional Use Permit in industrial zones, and are barred from every residential zone -- except as a limited home occupation.
Riverside Pet Grooming Business Zoning Rules
Some RestrictionsCity of Riverside, CA, Municipal Code Title 19 (Zoning), Table 19.150.020.A; Sec. 19.485.030.E & Sec. 19.485.040.G (Home Occupations)
Grooming (No overnight/long term boarding) X X X X X X X X P P P P P P MC MC X X X X P ... E.Some personal services, limited to activities associated with the work of dressmakers, seamstresses, and tailors; hair stylists; estheticians; pet groomers; and similar uses. ... G.A maximum of one customer or client vehicle at any given time shall be allowed to visit the premises of the home occupation.
Veterinary Clinic Zoning
In Riverside, veterinary clinics and small animal hospitals must operate entirely inside a fully enclosed, air-conditioned building with no outdoor runs, per Municipal Code §19.430.030. Boarding is capped at two weeks unless tied to ongoing medical treatment, and applicants must submit a licensed acoustical engineer's soundproofing report with their discretionary permit application to keep clinic noise inside the building.
Riverside Veterinary Clinic Zoning Standards
Some RestrictionsCity of Riverside, CA, Municipal Code Title 19 (Zoning), Sec. 19.430.030 (Ord. 7331 §67, 2016; Ord. 6966 §1, 2007)
A.Veterinary services involving clinics and small animal hospitals.1.The use of the building space shall be restricted to medical treatment and incidental care such as bathing, the trimming of common household pets on an outpatient basis only, except that temporary boarding in connection with medical treatment shall be permitted, and except that short-term boarding, defined to be not more than ...
Bird Protection
RMC § 9.12.040 makes it unlawful within Riverside to shoot, trap, snare, wound, poison, or kill any wild bird or wild fowl, or take their nests, eggs, or young, and extends the same protection to gray squirrels and other state- or federally-protected squirrels.
Riverside Bans Killing Wild Birds, Squirrels
Heavy RestrictionsCity of Riverside, CA, Municipal Code § 9.12.040
It is unlawful within the city to shoot, trap, snare, wound, poison or kill any wild bird or wild fowl of any kind, or to take or destroy the nests or eggs or young of the same, or of any gray squirrel or any squirrel protected by state or federal fish and wildlife regulatory agencies; other ground or non-native tree squirrels may be taken in compliance with this municipal code and state law. T...
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