10 county-level rules, plus city-specific rules for 3 cities in Rock County, Wisconsin.
Verified from official government sources
Whether you can keep chickens or livestock depends on local zoning. In unincorporated towns the Rock County zoning ordinance (Wis. Stat. 59.69) controls; villages like Footville and Orfordville allow up to six hens per dwelling. Cities set their own limits.
Wisconsin law lets any officer capture a dog off its owner's premises and not under control. Rock County licenses dogs; leash enforcement is set by your city, village, or town (Janesville, Beloit, etc.), not a countywide leash law.
Wis. Stat. 174.042(1)(a)
Except as provided in par. (b), a dog is considered to be running at large if it is off the premises of its owner and not under the control of the owner or some other person.
Rock County has no countywide breed ban. Wisconsin regulates dogs by behavior, not breed, and Rock County's own animal rules follow that. Some Wisconsin cities elsewhere restrict pit bulls, but no breed-specific ban applies countywide here.
Rock County sets no countywide beekeeping ordinance. Hives are allowed on agricultural land and are governed by local zoning in the towns (Wis. Stat. 59.69) and by each city or village. Wisconsin's right-to-farm law protects established apiaries.
Rock County has no single exotic-pet ordinance, but most municipalities ban wild or exotic animals as pets. Janesville prohibits keeping any wild, exotic, or vicious animal; Evansville and Town of Beloit restrict constrictor snakes over six feet, primates, and big cats.
Rock County has no blanket countywide wildlife-feeding ban, but deer and elk feeding is regulated statewide, and nuisance-feeding of wild animals is addressed by local codes. Attracting wildlife that becomes a nuisance can trigger municipal enforcement.
Livestock is allowed on agricultural land under the Rock County zoning ordinance (Wis. Stat. 59.69) in consenting unincorporated towns, and is generally prohibited in residential zones. Cities and villages set their own livestock limits. Right-to-farm law protects established farms.
Wisconsin's cruelty statute (Ch. 951) makes it illegal to keep animals without proper food, water, and shelter, which is how hoarding is enforced. Rock County uses these state cruelty laws plus municipal pet limits; there is no separate county hoarding ordinance.
Rock County sets no countywide numeric pet limit. Caps on the number of dogs or cats per household are set by each city, village, or town. The county's role is dog licensing and enforcement, not a household pet cap.
Wisconsin requires cats, like dogs, to be vaccinated against rabies. Rock County does not license cats countywide, and at-large or nuisance cat rules are set by each municipality. Owners remain responsible for damage or nuisance their cats cause.
Wis. Stat. 95.21(2)(a)
the owner of a dog shall have the dog vaccinated against rabies by a veterinarian or, if a veterinarian is physically present at the location the vaccine is administered, by a veterinary technician, pursuant to s. 89.05 (2) (d), at no later than 5 months of age and revaccinated within one year after the initial vaccination.
3 cities in Rock County have their own animal ordinances rules. Each link goes to that city's dedicated page with code citations.
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