10 rules for unincorporated Colusa County, California.
Verified from official government sources
Colusa County is agricultural and allows commercial animals by right in all agricultural zones. In residential and transitional zones, keeping is capped by an "animal density points" system: chicken hens count one point each, and a 6,000-square-foot lot allows four points, scaling up with parcel size.
In unincorporated Colusa County, a dog off its owner's property must be on a leash held by a person able to control it. County Code Section 3-7 defines a "leash" as a rope, strap, or chain not to exceed six feet. Working herding dogs, licensed hunting dogs, and obedience-class dogs are excepted.
Colusa County's animal code contains no breed-specific or pit-bull ban. No "vicious" or "dangerous dog" breed provision appears in Chapter 3 or the Zoning Code. California law also bars any dog program that is specific as to breed, except for spay/neuter requirements.
Beekeeping is an established agricultural activity in Colusa County, whose Zoning Code defines an apiary as any place where one or more colonies or nuclei of bees are kept and treats apiculture as agriculture. There is no county hive-count cap; California law requires apiaries to be registered with the county agricultural commissioner.
Colusa County's code does not authorize keeping wild or exotic animals as pets, and California law controls. State Fish and Game Code Section 2118 and Title 14 regulations bar importing, transporting, or possessing restricted wild animals without a state permit, and permits are not issued to keep wild animals as pets.
Colusa County's code has no standalone ordinance banning the feeding of wildlife. The county controls predatory animals through its "county trappers," and California Fish and Wildlife regulations restrict feeding and harassing big-game mammals such as deer and bears statewide.
Livestock keeping is a core right in rural Colusa County, where commercial animals are allowed by right in all agricultural zones. County Code Section 3-1 makes it unlawful to let livestock or fowl run at large or estray, and Chapter 34, the Right to Farm ordinance, protects established agricultural operations from nuisance claims.
Colusa County has no ordinance defining "hoarding" or capping animals at a residence, but its animal-nuisance provision, the kennel licensing threshold, the Zoning Code household-pet limits, and California's animal-cruelty laws together let authorities act when too many animals create unsanitary, dangerous, or neglectful conditions.
In residential and transitional zones, Colusa County's Zoning Code allows up to four household pets, rising to six on lots over 10,000 square feet and eight on lots over one acre. A premises with more than five dogs kept for breeding, sale, or other commercial purposes is a "kennel" needing a license.
Colusa County does not require cats to be licensed, vaccinated, or leashed; its licensing and rabies rules in Chapter 3 apply only to dogs. Cats count toward the household-pet limits in the Zoning Code, and California law requires shelters to hold stray cats and check for identification before disposition.
See every category we cover for Colusa County — parking, noise, fences, fires, animals, pools, and more.
Colusa County Ordinance Hub →