Animal Ordinances in Indiana (2026)

Indiana's Right to Farm Act protects established agricultural operations from nuisance lawsuits and limits local…

Carmel City Code § 6-93 makes it unlawful to keep cows, swine, chickens, horses, sheep, goats or ducks on less than…

Keeping a cow, horse, swine, or other large animal within Evansville requires a large animal permit under EMC…

Fort Wayne bans keeping cattle, goats, horses, poultry, pigs, and other farm animals in the city unless the Department…

LaPorte County's zoning code bans breeding or raising non-farm fowl or livestock outright in every residential and…

Vanderburgh County confines poultry and livestock raising to its most rural zoning districts. Section 17.20.210's Use…

In unincorporated Allen County, chickens, goats, and similar livestock are permitted by right in the A1 Agricultural…

Elkhart County's animal code names chickens, turkeys, geese and ducks as LIVESTOCK under § 90.01 and requires every…

Fishers requires anyone keeping livestock in the city, horses, cows, goats, pigs, or fowl, to provide adequate food…

Hamilton County's animal code defines livestock to expressly include fowl, meaning backyard chickens are regulated the…

Indianapolis-Marion County's updated zoning code (Consolidated Zoning and Subdivision Ordinance) permits backyard hens…

In unincorporated Lake County, keeping horses and farm animals is prohibited except on traditional farms (20+…

Porter County allows backyard poultry and livestock as "hobby farming" under the Unified Development Ordinance, but…

South Bend allows up to 6 hens per single-family home with a Chicken Coop Permit; roosters are banned. Coops give 1 sq…

Raising chickens on residentially zoned land under five acres in unincorporated St. Joseph County requires an annual…

In unincorporated Tippecanoe County, a resident may keep up to two horses they personally own as an accessory use with…

In Clark County's A1 Agricultural Zone, raising livestock is a permitted use by right. Section 156.21(B)(1) lists…

Anderson Municipal Code Sec. 91.51(B) requires all animals to be kept under restraint. Sec. 91.51(F) makes it unlawful…

In unincorporated Allen County, Indiana, dogs may not run at large. ACC 8-33-3-5 requires every owner to keep an animal…

Carmel's City Code sets no dog-restraint rule, so the Hamilton County Animal Control ordinance (Title 15, Art. 2.1)…

Section 91.36 requires every dog and cat in Clark County to be kept under restraint at all times, defined by Section…

Elkhart County requires every dog owner to keep the animal 'properly under restraint and not at large' under §…

Evansville requires any animal to be leashed whenever it is off the owner's property, and separately bans dogs running…

Fishers bans letting any animal run at large, collared or not, anywhere in the city and requires owners to keep pets…

Fort Wayne dogs must be on a leash under control or confined on the owner's property citywide, and on a leash 6 feet or…

Indiana requires owners to reasonably restrain dogs; letting a dog stray off your premises is an infraction, and…

Hendricks County requires every dog owner to keep their dog under restraint at all times and bars letting a dog run at…

Indianapolis bans letting any animal run at large under Sec. 531-102, defined as loose and not on a leash under a…

In unincorporated Lake County, dogs may not run at large. An owner or keeper must not cause, suffer, or allow an animal…

LaPorte County makes it unlawful for anyone to let a dog or other domestic animal run at large in the unincorporated…

Sec. 4-9 of Porter County's Animal Control Ordinance bars owners from letting a dog run at large and requires every dog…

South Bend requires every animal to be kept under control off the owner's property, meaning leashed, caged, or under…

In unincorporated St. Joseph County, a dog is legally "at large" if it is off its owner's property without a leash, or…

Tippecanoe County owners may not let a dog or other animal run at-large: loose and out of the owner's direct control or…

Vanderburgh County's Animal Control Ordinance makes it a violation for an owner, agent or custodian to let an animal go…

Elkhart County has no breed ban: § 90.01 defines DANGEROUS ANIMAL by conduct, not breed, covering any animal that…

Fishers has no breed-specific ban; instead, City Code § 91.07 lets an Animal Control Officer declare any individual…

Hamilton County does not ban dog breeds by name. County Code Section 15-2.1-1-10 lets a prior court finding turn any…

Hendricks County has no breed-specific ban; instead it declares individual animals dangerous or potentially dangerous…

Porter County does not ban dogs by breed. Instead, Sec. 4-8 of the Animal Control Ordinance lets county animal control…

South Bend does not ban dogs by breed. Instead, an Animal Welfare Commission hearing declares individual animals…

St. Joseph County has no breed ban; it regulates dogs by behavior. A dog that attacks a person or another animal, or…

Vanderburgh County has no breed ban: the code expressly states a dog's breed cannot be used to declare it "dangerous,"…

Allen County's Animal Control Ordinance imposes no breed-specific ban. It regulates dogs by behavior: ACC 8-33-3-4…

Anderson's animal code has no breed-specific ban. Dangerous dogs are handled by conduct under the vicious-animal…

Unincorporated Lake County imposes breed-specific rules on pit bulls. When not confined, a pit bull must be muzzled and…

Tippecanoe County does not ban or restrict any dog breed by name. Chapter 90 instead defines a "hazardous animal" by…

Evansville's Animal Control chapter defines a dangerous animal by documented aggressive behavior, not by breed. EMC…

Indianapolis does not have any breed-specific ban or restriction; pit bulls and other breeds are legal to own…

Indiana does not require statewide apiary registration, but IC 14-24-8-4 bars bringing bees or beekeeping equipment in…

Beekeeping is permitted in unincorporated Allen County's agricultural zones. The Zoning Ordinance defines 'Apiculture'…

Carmel permits residential beekeeping as an accessory use under Unified Development Ordinance Section 5.02. Hive count…

Beekeeping is legal across Elkhart County and treated as agriculture. Indiana requires no state hive registration…

Fort Wayne allows residential beekeeping with a sliding scale of two to eight hives based on lot size, plus mandatory…

Indianapolis zoning permits personal beekeeping of domesticated honeybees in every zoning district under Sec…

Unincorporated Lake County allows backyard beekeeping as an accessory use. Up to four hives are permitted, plus one…

South Bend allows honey bee hives citywide but caps them at 17 cubic feet and sets strict placement rules: a 4-foot…

Backyard beekeepers in unincorporated St. Joseph County can only keep the domestic honey bee, Apis mellifera, in hives…

Indiana Code 14-22-26 and 312 IAC 9-11 regulate possession of wild and exotic animals, requiring permits from the…

Anderson Municipal Code Sec. 91.63 makes it unlawful to keep any wild or vicious animal for display, or to keep any…

Evansville prohibits keeping 'controlled animals', primates, big cats, large constrictor snakes, crocodilians and more…

Fort Wayne bans owning any wild animal native to Indiana and any dangerous wild or exotic animal, with narrow…

Hendricks County bars keeping any wild animal within the county unless the County Planning and Zoning Department and…

South Bend bans keeping, buying, selling or trading a dangerous wild or exotic animal, and any wild or exotic animal…

Owning a wild or dangerous animal in Indianapolis requires registering it with animal care services first, and no one…

No wild or exotic animal can be kept anywhere in unincorporated St. Joseph County without county, state and federal…

Allen County's Animal Control Ordinance regulates 'domestic animals,' not exotic species. It sets no specific…

Unincorporated Lake County bans keeping wild animals without a Director's waiver, even if you hold a state or federal…

Feeding a colony of feral cats in Hamilton County is unlawful unless the colony is registered as a managed…

Allen County's Animal Control Ordinance regulates domestic animals and does not specifically prohibit feeding wildlife…

Anderson has no standalone wildlife-feeding ban, but Sec. 91.01 defines 'harboring' so that feeding an animal for three…

Feeding, scattering or leaving food for birds or fowl in Indianapolis parks, playgrounds, parkways and streets is…

South Bend prohibits feeding a free-roaming cat for more than 3 days unless enrolled in the managed community-cat…

Fishers defines animal hoarding as collecting animals without adequate care, letting dead animals accumulate, or…

LaPorte County's zoning definitions at § 150.05 classify any premises keeping more than four dogs, cats, or other…

The Allen County Animal Control Ordinance sets no fixed cap on the number of dogs or cats a household may keep. Instead…

Anderson has no statute using the word 'hoarding,' but keeping four or more dogs and/or cats makes you a regulated…

Carmel's City Code sets no numeric pet limit, so the Hamilton County standard applies inside the city: a household with…

Clark County's zoning code draws the line for a residential pet owner at four animals: Section 156.05 defines a kennel…

Evansville's housing standard requires a minimum of 40 square feet of enclosure per animal up to 10 pounds, plus 10…

Fort Wayne caps household pet ownership at five dogs, seven cats, or a combined seven dogs and cats, unless the…

Lake County Code sets no flat cap on household dogs or cats, but any person keeping animals must register them, and…

South Bend does not cap altered pets, but owning more than one unaltered dog or cat over six months old requires a…

The Revised Code of the Consolidated City and County does not impose a flat numerical limit on the number of dogs or…

Tippecanoe County's animal-control chapter does not cap the number of dogs or cats a household may keep. § 90.03(A)(8)…

Fishers bans feeding a feral cat colony unless it's a registered managed colony run under trap-neuter-return with…

Cats are 'domestic animals' under Allen County's ordinance and are bound by the stray and nuisance rules. ACC 8-33-3-1…

Cats in Anderson must be kept under restraint like other animals (Sec. 91.51). Sec. 91.72 adds a Community Cat (TNR)…

Carmel City Code § 6-101 addresses Feral Cats directly. For owned cats, the Hamilton County ordinance applies inside…

Section 91.39 requires every female dog or cat in heat to be confined in a building or secure enclosure so it cannot…

Elkhart County's animal code protects colony caretakers who feed and shelter free-roaming cats. Section 90.13 keeps a…

Fort Wayne requires owners to register any cat over five months old with the city, but registered community cat…

Unincorporated Lake County requires dogs and cats over six months old to be vaccinated annually for rabies by a…

LaPorte County requires every cat over three months old to carry a current annual rabies vaccination under Code §…

Vanderburgh County has no separate cat license or feral-colony ordinance. Chapter 6.05's Animal Control code defines…

Evansville runs a trap-neuter-return community cat program: free-roaming cats can be trapped, sterilized, ear-tipped…

Indianapolis authorizes trap-neuter-return for free-roaming cats under Sec. 531-209: anyone may humanely trap a stray…

Unlike dogs, cats may roam free in Porter County if spayed or neutered, and feral "colony" cats are protected once…

Tippecanoe County treats a free-roaming cat as a "community cat" under § 90.13 unless its owner can be identified by…

Hendricks County has no cat leash law: Animal Control will not pick up cats simply for running at large. Strays…

Hamilton County requires every dog and cat over six months old to be spayed or neutered by a licensed veterinarian…

Fishers requires every dog and cat over six months old to be spayed or neutered by a licensed vet, unless the owner…

Marion County requires the owner of any unaltered dog over six months old to register on the Marion County Unaltered…

South Bend does not require every pet to be fixed, but a dog or cat impounded stray or at-large a second time must be…

Tippecanoe County does not require every pet fixed. But an owner cited for at-large, inoculation, restraint…

Evansville does not mandate spay/neuter for all pets, but requires it once an animal has been impounded stray or at…

Fort Wayne requires every dog and cat released for adoption through Animal Care and Control to be spayed or neutered…

Hendricks County does not require owners to spay or neuter pets outright, but an owner whose non-neutered dog or cat…

LaPorte County requires every dog or cat adopted from the county animal shelter or a local humane society to be spayed…

Porter County does not require every pet be sterilized, but Sec. 4-12(f) mandates spay or neuter at the owner's expense…

Any dog or cat adopted from a local humane society, animal care facility or welfare organization in St. Joseph County…

Every dog, cat, and ferret kept in Evansville must be implanted with a microchip under EMC 6.05.030(A)(2), unless a…

Fishers requires every dog and cat three months or older kept in the city to carry a permanent microchip or ID-tagged…

Porter County requires microchipping only for repeat offenders: Sec. 4-12(f)(1) mandates a microchip implant, at the…

Tippecanoe County does not require every pet to carry a microchip. But any owner cited for an at-large, inoculation…

Elkhart County doesn't require pet owners to microchip animals outright, but § 90.10(D) requires the county's animal…

Fort Wayne does not mandate microchipping every pet, but a sterilized dog or cat with a microchip implant qualifies for…

Hendricks County does not require microchips for every pet, but it mandates them for animals declared dangerous or…

Lake County Animal Control treats a microchip as valid proof of ownership when a lost dog or cat is impounded. A…

Vanderburgh County's code does not require routine pet microchipping. The only microchip provision sits in the…

Hamilton County outlaws puppy mills outright, fining backyard breeders and puppy-mill operators up to $1,500.00 per…

Porter County bans pet shops from selling or offering for sale any dog, cat or rabbit under Code Sec. 12-282, adopted…

Fishers bans puppy mills and backyard breeders outright; pet shops may still sell animals but must meet care…

Indianapolis pet shops cannot sell a dog, cat, or rabbit unless it came from an animal care services shelter or a…

A licensed pet shop in unincorporated St. Joseph County cannot sell, trade or barter dogs or cats for a fee: it may…

Tippecanoe County bans retail pet stores in the unincorporated county from selling dogs or cats outright, adopted as a…

Fort Wayne does not ban pet stores from selling dogs and cats. Shops need an annual permit, must give buyers a written…

Lake County requires a pet shop permit for anyone selling dogs, cats or other animals, bars sale of a puppy or kitten…

South Bend allows pet shops to sell dogs and cats, it is not adoption-only, but every shop needs a permit, must give…

Anyone running a pet grooming business in Fort Wayne must get an annual $100 grooming establishment permit from Animal…

Anyone operating a pet grooming shop in unincorporated Lake County must hold a grooming shop permit from Animal…

Clark County treats animal hospitals and kennels as a special use, Table S.U. item #6, meaning a site needs Board of…

LaPorte County's zoning use table splits veterinary care into two categories with different rules. A veterinary…

In unincorporated Tippecanoe County, the Unified Zoning Ordinance treats a veterinary clinic as a use that cannot hide…

Veterinary clinics are permitted outright in Evansville's agricultural, conservancy and airport zones, but need Special…

Porter County's Unified Development Ordinance bars any animal hospital from operating as a home occupation in a…

Elkhart County parks are a no-hunting zone for wild birds and other feral animals. Section 93.018 makes it unlawful to…

Evansville bars hunting, harming, trapping, or possessing the eggs, nest, or young of any bird or wildlife within city…

LaPorte County Code § 93.16(G)(1) bars hunting, trapping, or otherwise molesting any wild bird within a county park…

Vanderburgh County Code 12.24.010(J) bans hunting, molesting, harming, or throwing missiles at any bird, wildlife…