Animal Ordinances in DeKalb County, GA (2026)

DeKalb County Code of Ordinances § 4.2.7(I)

1.The minimum fenced yard area for chickens shall be twenty-five (25) square feet per hen.2.Chickens and pigeons must be housed at least twenty (20) feet from any property line, and fifty (50) feet from any residence other than the owner's.3.Any structure housing chickens and pigeons must be located in the rear yard if a principal building exists.4.The minimum lot size for the keeping of chicke...

DeKalb County Code § 5-5

It shall be unlawful for the owner of an animal to allow it to run at large unattended on or about the streets, rights-of-way, and highways of unincorporated DeKalb County; in any DeKalb County park, except in county parks that are specifically designated as off leash areas; unattended on or about the common property of any apartment complex or condominium community; or on the property of anoth...

DeKalb County Code § 5-10(a)

Pursuant to 1979 Ga. Laws 516, if the police chief learns of the existence of a dangerous animal or vicious animal, the police chief shall then cause a summons to be issued within seventy-two (72) hours requiring the owner of the animal to appear before a judge of the DeKalb County court of competent jurisdiction or magistrate court...to conduct a hearing as to the appropriate classification of...

DeKalb County Code of Ordinances § 4.2.7(J)

Beekeeping.1.No more than two (2) apiary colonies are allowed per one-quarter (0.25) acre.2.Apiary colonies must be setback from all property lines a minimum of ten (10) feet.3.Apiary colonies must be located in the side or rear yard if a principal building exists.4.Apiary colonies must be maintained responsibly with adequate space and management techniques to prevent overcrowding and swarming....

DeKalb County Code § 5-15

No person shall own, keep, harbor, house, or permit to be kept, harbored or housed, a hazardous animal within unincorporated DeKalb County, unless granted prior written approval from the police chief. Written approval may be granted upon presentation of photographic proof that the animal will be kept adequately restrained or confined as is common for the species.

DeKalb County Code of Ordinances §§ 5-1 (definition), 5-7 (Neglect)

It shall be unlawful for any owner to neglect an animal. ... Neglect means endangering an animal's health by failing to provide or arrange to provide the animal with food or drink ... or exposing an animal to unsanitary conditions.

DeKalb County Code § 5-25(d)

Unowned, free-roaming cats shall be vaccinated, sterilized and ear tipped as part of the community cat program. Cats brought into the community cat program are exempt from registration, licensing, and stray animal provisions of this chapter, shall not be deemed abandoned when returned to the location where captured, and as necessary and appropriate, may be exempt from other provisions of this C...

DeKalb County Code § 5-25(a)

It shall be the duty of the owner of a dog or cat declared to be a classified animal by a court of competent jurisdiction to have the animal sterilized. Such sterilization must be performed by a licensed veterinarian within thirty (30) days of a final order of a court of competent jurisdiction finding that the dog or cat is a classified animal.(b)It shall be the duty of the owner and/or qualifi...

DeKalb County Code § 5-9

It shall be the duty of every animal owner who has been convicted, in a court of competent jurisdiction, of abandonment, cruelty or neglect of an animal, or who owns a classified animal, to have the animal permanently identified by insertion of a microchip by a licensed veterinarian. Said chip must be registered with the chip parent company and the police chief.

DeKalb County Code § 5-33(b)

It shall be unlawful for any person to sell, display for a commercial purpose, or advertise for sale any dog, cat, or domestic rabbit at any transient location within unincorporated DeKalb County regardless of whether such act is authorized by the landowner.(c)The following categories of sales, displays for a commercial purpose, or advertisements for sale are not prohibited by this section:(1)T...

DeKalb County Code of Ordinances, Ch. 27 (Zoning), Sec. 4.2.11.A

A.Animal hospitals and veterinary clinics.1.Any building or enclosed structure used as an animal hospital or veterinary clinic, except those located in the MU-1, MU-2, MU-3, MU-4, and MU-5 districts, shall be located and the activities associated with the use shall be conducted at least one hundred (100) feet from any single-family residential property zoned or used for residential purposes.2.N...

DeKalb County Code § 16-5

The entire portion of the unincorporated county lying between Interstate Highway 285 and the west boundary of the county and all that tract or parcel of land bounded on the north by Rainbow Drive, bounded on the east by Wesley Chapel Road, bounded on the south by Interstate Highway 285 are designated as a bird sanctuary. No person shall trap, hunt, shoot or attempt to shoot any bird or wildfowl...