Chico, CA Noise Ordinances: Barking Dogs (2026)

Chico Municipal Code § 7.08.130 is a list of specific acts and conditions committed by a dog that the city declares to be unlawful and to constitute a public nuisance. Subsection (E) is the barking provision. It covers creating a disturbance in a neighborhood by howling, barking or making unusual noises.

Each part of that phrase does work. The noise can be howling, barking, or any unusual noise, so sounds that fall outside ordinary barking are still within reach. The noise must create a disturbance, which means a dog that barks without disturbing anyone is not what the subsection describes. And the disturbance must be in a neighborhood, so the focus is on the effect on the people living around the dog. The quoted text sets no decibel level, no minimum duration, and no restricted hours. In Chico the question is whether the dog's noise disturbed the neighborhood.

The section opens with the words without limitation as to the general provisions of Section 7.08.120. That means the list in § 7.08.130 adds specific examples and does not narrow the general nuisance provisions in § 7.08.120. Barking sits on the list alongside biting, property damage, and running loose on school grounds.

Responsibility falls on the owner. The code says the owner of a dog committing any of the listed acts shall be subject to the penalties provided by this title. It is the dog that commits the act and the owner who answers for it, not just whoever is present at the time.

Animal Services can pursue abatement under § 7.08.140, and repeated nuisance conduct can lead to impoundment.