Barking dog rules in Whittier, CA — also called nuisance dog, dog noise, or excessive barking ordinances — define when a barking dog becomes a code violation and how complaints are handled.
In the City of Whittier, keeping any animal or bird that makes frequent or long-continued noise plainly audible to occupants of adjacent or neighboring homes (or audible 50 feet from a nonresidential building) is presumed to disturb the peace and is prima facie evidence of a noise violation under the city's noise-control chapter.
Whittier Municipal Code 8.32.040(A) ("Animals and Birds") provides that the keeping of any animal or bird that causes frequent or long-continued noise plainly audible by inhabitants or occupants of any adjacent or neighboring residential properties or units, or plainly audible at a distance of 50 feet from any nonresidential building or structure, shall be presumed to disturb the comfort and repose of any person in the vicinity and is prima facie evidence of a violation of the noise chapter. The code carves out an exception for occasional noises emanating from a legally operated kennel, animal hospital, veterinary clinic, humane society, or pound. Whittier's noise chapter is narrative rather than decibel-based, so there is no fixed number of barks or sound-level reading; officers rely on their normal hearing faculties to assess the disturbance (WMC 8.32.060). Animal control services for the City of Whittier are provided through a contract arrangement, but the noise standard itself is set by the city's own Municipal Code. A separate, more general prohibition in WMC 8.32.030 also bars any excessive or unreasonable noise disturbing a neighborhood, which can independently apply to a persistently barking dog.
A barking-dog complaint is handled as a noise nuisance under Chapter 8.32 and may also trigger animal-control response. Violations are public nuisances abatable by the City (WMC 8.32.150) and are punished as prescribed in WMC 1.08.010. Joint responsibility provisions can reach the property owner or keeper.
Other ordinances people look up for this city. Green dot = verified primary-source excerpt.
whittier-ca
Under California SB 1383, Whittier requires residents and businesses to separate organic waste (food scraps and yard/green waste) into organics collection. T...
whittier-ca
Whittier's municipal code does not contain a stand-alone artificial-turf ordinance, and the City does not prohibit synthetic turf on residential property. Sy...
whittier-ca
Whittier does not mandate native plants, but its Single-Family Residential Design Guidelines state that drought-tolerant and native plants should be a priori...
whittier-ca
Whittier's municipal code does not prohibit residential rainwater harvesting, and California's Rainwater Capture Act (2012) lets residents collect rainwater ...
whittier-ca
Whittier homes are served by the City's own water division or by Suburban Water Systems. Under WMC 13.24.010 the public works director may restrict watering ...
whittier-ca
Whittier Municipal Code Chapter 8.24 (Weed Abatement), adopted by Ordinance 2388 in 1986, is the City's weed ordinance. It makes it a public nuisance to allo...
Side-by-side rule comparisons with other cities in Los Angeles County.
See how other cities in Los Angeles County handle barking dogs.
See how Whittier's barking dogs rules stack up against other locations.
Help us keep this page accurate. If you notice an error or outdated information, let us know.