Animal Ordinances in Whitfield County, GA (2026)
9 rules for unincorporated Whitfield County, Georgia.
Verified from official government sources
Chickens & Livestock
Outside the City of Dalton, unincorporated Whitfield County lets residents keep livestock and small animals, including chickens, on GA, SA and R-5 zoned lots under the Unified Zoning Ordinance. Livestock needs at least two acres and 25-foot setbacks; small animals like chickens are capped at ten per lot under five acres, and no roosters or other loud fowl are allowed near neighbors.
Whitfield County Backyard Chicken and Livestock Rules
Some RestrictionsWhitfield County Unified Zoning Ordinance § 4-6-17(a), (b)(3)
(a)Except within the City of Dalton, raising and keeping livestock, ten (10) or more pounds in weight shall be permitted upon a lot or parcel in the GA, SA and R-5 Residential zoning districts, or upon a lot in a commercial or manufacturing zoning district upon which there is located a non-conforming single family dwelling occupied as a residence, provided that there is a minimum of two (2) acr...
Dog Leash Laws
Whitfield County Code § 4-23 requires every dog to stay confined to its owner's property unless restrained by a leash or chain no longer than six feet, bans dogs on private property without the owner's consent, and lets the county post areas where dogs are prohibited outright.
Dog Restraint and Leash Law, Whitfield County
Some RestrictionsWhitfield County Code § 4-23
No person owning or otherwise having a dog in his or her care, charge, control, custody, or possession shall cause, permit, or allow the dog leave the confinement of the owner's or other responsible party's property unless such dog is under restraint by leash or chain. The leash or chain shall not exceed six feet in length, unless it is a retractable-type leash. No person owning or otherwise ha...
Breed Restrictions
Whitfield County does not restrict dogs by breed; instead, Whitfield County Code § 4-45 requires any dog classified as dangerous or vicious after an investigation to be registered annually with Whitfield County Animal Control, kept in a secure enclosure, and marked with posted warning signs before the owner may keep it.
Dangerous Dog Registration, Whitfield County
Significant RestrictionsWhitfield County Code § 4-45(a)-(b)
(a)It shall be unlawful for an owner to have or to possess within Whitfield County a classified dog without a certificate of registration issued in accordance with this chapter by Whitfield County Animal Control. Certificates of registration shall be non-transferable and shall only be issued to a person 18 years of age or older. No more than one certificate of registration shall be issued per d...
Pet Limits
Unincorporated Whitfield County sets no numeric cap on how many dogs or cats a household may keep. The three-or-more threshold in the Unified Zoning Ordinance only applies to a fee-based commercial kennel, which is a distinct, separately zoned land use, not an ordinary household with pets.
No Pet Cap, But Fee-Based Kennels Are Zoned
Few RestrictionsWhitfield County Unified Zoning Ordinance §§ 2-2, 4-6-30
Kennel, commercial. Any premises at which three (3) or more dogs, cats, or other domestic or non-domestic animals, four (4) months old or older, are kept either permanently or temporarily for the purpose of sale, care, breeding, or training, and for which a fee is incurred by the owner of such animal. ... Kennels for boarding and breeding are permitted outright in the C-2 and C-4 zoning distric...
Cat Rules
Whitfield County Code § 4-24 requires cats to stay on their owner's property unless physically restrained by a responsible person, bars cats from private property without the owner's consent, and lets the county post areas where cats are prohibited, with no county-wide cat licensing requirement.
Cat Restraint Rule, Whitfield County
Some RestrictionsWhitfield County Code § 4-24
No person owning or otherwise having a cat in his or her care, charge, control, custody, or possession shall cause, permit, or allow such cat to leave the confinement of the owner's or other responsible party's property unless physically restrained by a responsible person. No person owning or otherwise having a cat in his or her care, charge, control, custody, or possession shall cause, permit,...
Mandatory Spay/Neuter
Whitfield County Code § 4-10 requires every dog or cat six months or older to be spayed or neutered unless the owner holds a state breeder's license or a veterinarian certifies a health exemption, with enforcement by Whitfield County Animal Control.
Whitfield County Mandatory Spay/Neuter Rule
Heavy RestrictionsWhitfield County Code § 4-10
(a)Within Whitfield County, no person may own, keep, or be in possession of a dog or cat that is six months of age or older which has not been spayed or neutered, unless otherwise exempt from this requirement hereunder.(b)Whether a dog or cat shall have attained at least six months of age shall be determined by the Whitfield County Animal Control Director, by any duly-authorized animal control ...
Microchipping
Whitfield County Code § 4-45(c)(3) requires a scannable microchip implanted between the shoulder blades of any dog classified as a vicious dog before Whitfield County Animal Control will issue the annual certificate of registration that lets the owner keep it.
Vicious Dog Microchip Rule, Whitfield County
Light RestrictionsWhitfield County Code § 4-45(c)
(c)Except as provided in subsections (e) and (f) of this Code section, a certificate of registration for a vicious dog shall be issued if the dog control officer determines that the following requirements have been met:(1)The owner has maintained an enclosure designed to securely confine the vicious dog on the owner's property, indoors, or in a securely locked and enclosed pen, fence, or struct...
Pet Groomer Rules
Within Whitfield County's Urban Planned Unit Development (U-PUD) district, a pet grooming facility is a permitted retail use alongside nail salons and barber shops, but Section 5-4 caps every such retail-service storefront at 1,800 square feet. The rule sits in the commercial portion of the county's Unified Zoning Ordinance.
Pet Grooming Shops in Whitfield County's U-PUD Zone
Light RestrictionsWhitfield County Unified Zoning Ordinance § 5-4
vi.Retail sales and service: including but not limited to coffee shops, bakeries, food stores, pet grooming facilities, nail salons, beauty salons, barber shops, drugstores, clothing stores, home furnishings and hardware, specialty shops, craft shops, photography studios, art studios, antique shops, gift and floral shops, print or letter shops, bookstores, office supplies and equipment, and out...
Veterinary Clinic Zoning
Whitfield County excludes veterinary clinics and animal hospitals that keep outdoor kennels from the commercial acreage of any Urban Planned Unit Development. Section 5-4 of the Unified Zoning Ordinance places that use on its prohibited list, the same list that excludes stand-alone kennels and junkyards from U-PUD commercial areas.
Whitfield County U-PUD Bars Outdoor-Kennel Vet Clinics
Heavy RestrictionsWhitfield County Unified Zoning Ordinance § 5-4
x.Prohibited: ... • Veterinarian or Animal Hospitals with Outdoor Kennels,
All Whitfield County ordinances
See every category we cover for Whitfield County: parking, noise, fences, fires, animals, pools, and more.
Whitfield County Ordinance Hub →