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Animal Ordinances in Oregon (2026)

142 rules on the books across Oregon, 19 cities and counties. Select a rule to read the full details.

Severity: Few Restrictions · Light Restrictions · Some Restrictions · Significant Restrictions · Heavy Restrictions

Chickens & Livestock

Combined rules for keeping chickens and other livestock such as goats, rabbits, and ducks on residential property, including lot size requirements.

Oregon: statewide

StatewideLight Restrictions

Oregon is an open-range state: under ORS 607.005 livestock may lawfully run at large unless voters form a livestock…

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Albany

Some Restrictions

In the City of Albany, Oregon, poultry, fowl, and rabbits are limited to two animals on any lot under 7,000 square…

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Beaverton

Some Restrictions

Beaverton allows up to four hens per property for personal use, bans roosters outright, and requires a…

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Clackamas County

Some Restrictions

In unincorporated Clackamas County, chickens and roosters are allowed in rural areas but restricted in urban and…

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Corvallis

Some Restrictions

In the City of Corvallis, keeping livestock such as horses, cattle, goats, sheep, or swine requires registering the…

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Eugene

Some Restrictions

Eugene's EC 9.5250 Urban Animal Keeping Standards, current through Ordinance 20739, let residents on lots under 20,000…

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Gresham

Some Restrictions

Gresham allows up to three permitted hens on a single-detached-dwelling lot, bans roosters outright, and separately…

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Hillsboro

Some Restrictions

Hillsboro requires a City-approved livestock permit before keeping any livestock under HMC 6.20.070, bans standard…

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Josephine County

Some Restrictions

In the county's Rural Residential zones outside the Grants Pass and Cave Junction urban growth boundaries, § 19.61.050…

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Lane County

Some Restrictions

Lane County's Animal Services Code does not set livestock-keeping limits; horses, cattle, sheep, and goats are a zoning…

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Marion County

Some Restrictions

In Marion County, animals raised for food, fur or monetary gain are livestock and a farm use. Farm use is allowed in…

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Medford

Some Restrictions

Medford allows personal-use poultry, chickens, ducks, geese and swans, on residential property under Code Section…

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Multnomah County

Some Restrictions

Multnomah County requires anyone keeping livestock to post a county-issued numbered sign at the property entrance…

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Portland

Some Restrictions

Portland lets residents keep up to four chickens, ducks, or pigeons per lot without a permit, six on lots 10,000 square…

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Salem

Some Restrictions

Salem allows up to twelve poultry per residence, community garden, or school and religious-organization lot under SRC…

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Springfield

Some Restrictions

In the City of Springfield, Oregon, backyard fowl and poultry are limited by lot size under Municipal Code Section…

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Tigard

Some Restrictions

In the City of Tigard, Washington County, Oregon, backyard livestock are governed by Tigard Municipal Code § 6.02.630…

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Dog Leash Laws

When and where dogs must be on a leash, off-leash park rules, leash length limits, and penalties for dogs running loose.

Hillsboro

Heavy Restrictions

Hillsboro requires dogs to be leashed off the owner's property. Washington County Animal Services enforces leash laws.

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Corvallis

Significant Restrictions

In the City of Corvallis, no dog may be at large, meaning off the owner's premises and not restrained by a handheld…

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Albany

Some Restrictions

In the City of Albany, Oregon, a dog is at large whenever it is off its owner's premises and not under complete control…

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Beaverton

Some Restrictions

Beaverton excludes dogs from its general animal-at-large rule and instead enforces Washington County's Dog Control…

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Bend

Some Restrictions

In the City of Bend, dogs may not run at large: they must stay under complete, tethered control of the owner by…

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Benton County

Some Restrictions

In unincorporated Benton County, dog owners are prohibited from letting a dog be at large: off the owner's property and…

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Clackamas County

Some Restrictions

In unincorporated Clackamas County a dog off its owner's property must be under the immediate control of a person. A…

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Eugene

Some Restrictions

Eugene bans letting a dog run at large anywhere in the city under EC 4.425, and treats an owner as automatically…

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Josephine County

Some Restrictions

In Josephine County parks, dogs and other animals cannot run unrestrained; a leash longer than six feet is also a…

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Lane County

Some Restrictions

In unincorporated Lane County, no owner may permit a dog to be at large. A "dog-at-large" is off the owner's premises…

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Marion County

Some Restrictions

Marion County prohibits dogs from running at large. A dog off the keeper's property and not under immediate control…

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Medford

Some Restrictions

Medford bans letting a dog "run at large", off leash in a public place, under Code Section 5.602, except in areas the…

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Multnomah County

Some Restrictions

Off the owner's property, Multnomah County requires a dog be confined so it can't reach public areas, or restrained by…

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Portland

Some Restrictions

Portland City Code requires any animal inside a city park to be leashed to no more than eight feet, with waste picked…

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Salem

Some Restrictions

Salem does not have a citywide dog-at-large ordinance in its municipal code; animal control in Salem is handled by…

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Springfield

Some Restrictions

In the City of Springfield, Oregon, Municipal Code Section 5.418 makes it unlawful for a dog keeper to permit a dog to…

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Tigard

Some Restrictions

In the City of Tigard, Oregon, § 7.52.190 requires domesticated animals inside city parks to be on a leash at all…

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Washington County

Some Restrictions

Washington County Code 6.04.230 makes it a Class C civil infraction for any dog owner or keeper to let a dog run at…

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Breed Restrictions

Bans or special requirements for specific dog breeds, including breed-specific legislation, muzzle requirements, and insurance mandates.

Clackamas County

Significant Restrictions

Clackamas County Code 5.01.050(C) lets a Hearings Officer classify any dog that has menaced, bitten, chased, injured or…

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Eugene

Significant Restrictions

Eugene has no breed-based dog ban: EC 4.435 classifies a dog as 'potentially dangerous' purely on what it did, sorted…

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Medford

Significant Restrictions

Medford has no breed-specific dog ban. Instead, Code Section 5.601 defines a "dangerous dog" by its conduct, an…

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Washington County

Significant Restrictions

Washington County Code does not ban dogs by breed. Instead, WCC 6.04.310 classifies 'dangerous behavior' by what a dog…

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Bend

Some Restrictions

The City of Bend has no breed-specific ban: any dog can be declared a dangerous animal by the Bend Municipal Court…

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Lane County

Some Restrictions

Lane County does not ban any dog breed. Instead of breed labels, the Animal Services Code regulates individual dogs by…

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Marion County

Some Restrictions

Marion County does not ban any dog breed. Regulation is behavior-based: state law ORS 609.098 makes it a crime to…

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Springfield

Some Restrictions

In the City of Springfield, Oregon, dangerous-dog enforcement is breed-neutral. Section 5.402 defines 'dog' to include…

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Multnomah County

Light Restrictions

Multnomah County classifies dogs as potentially dangerous or dangerous based on documented behavior, not breed. There…

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Salem

Few Restrictions

Salem does not impose breed-specific legislation. Oregon's potentially dangerous dog statutes (ORS 609) address dogs…

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Beekeeping

Rules for keeping bees in residential areas, including hive placement, number of colonies allowed, and registration requirements.

Oregon: statewide

StatewideSome Restrictions

Oregon Department of Agriculture requires all beekeepers with five or more hives to register annually under ORS…

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Gresham

Some Restrictions

Gresham allows honeybee hives on single-family lots under GRC Article 7.18, capping colonies at six with flyway-barrier…

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Hillsboro

Some Restrictions

Hillsboro homeowners may keep up to 3 hives, set back at least 10 feet from property lines, with mandatory notice to…

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Marion County

Some Restrictions

Marion County's Rural Zone Code prohibits beekeeping in the Single Family Residential (RS) zone. Keeping honeybees is…

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Medford

Some Restrictions

Medford allows beekeeping in single-family residential, commercial, industrial, and public parks districts, but every…

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Portland

Some Restrictions

Portland allows up to 4 beehives per lot (6 on lots 10,000+ sq ft), with mandatory setbacks, flyaway barriers, and a…

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Salem

Some Restrictions

Salem caps residential beekeeping at five hives per property, temporarily seven from April through August for splits…

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Springfield

Some Restrictions

In the City of Springfield, Oregon, backyard beekeeping is limited by hive count and lot size under Municipal Code…

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Tigard

Some Restrictions

In the City of Tigard, Washington County, Oregon, honeybees are livestock under Tigard Municipal Code § 6.02.630.C…

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Multnomah County

Few Restrictions

In unincorporated Multnomah County's Rural Residential (RR), MUA-20 and similar rural zones, raising honeybees is a…

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Exotic Pets

Which non-traditional pets are allowed or banned, such as reptiles, ferrets, potbelly pigs, and other exotic animals.

Oregon: statewide

StatewideHeavy Restrictions

Oregon ORS 609.305 to 609.335 prohibits keeping non-native cats, bears, primates, crocodilians, and venomous reptiles…

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Beaverton

Heavy Restrictions

Beaverton prohibits keeping any wild, exotic, or dangerous animal within city limits, with narrow exceptions for…

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Benton County

Heavy Restrictions

Unincorporated Benton County bans using wild or exotic animals, listed exhaustively in County Code § 9.805(4) from…

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Corvallis

Heavy Restrictions

In the City of Corvallis, owning, keeping, harboring, or possessing a 'dangerous animal,' a category that by definition…

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Multnomah County

Heavy Restrictions

Multnomah County makes it unlawful to harbor or own a dangerous or exotic animal, lions, primates, bears, venomous…

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Springfield

Heavy Restrictions

In the City of Springfield, Oregon, Section 5.476 bans keeping wildlife or an exotic animal anywhere inside city…

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Washington County

Heavy Restrictions

Washington County Code 6.08.030 bans keeping any exotic animal in the unincorporated county, big cats, non-human…

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Albany

Some Restrictions

In the City of Albany, Oregon, exotic animals are permitted as house pets only when the required state or federal…

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Hillsboro

Some Restrictions

Hillsboro defers exotic-pet eligibility to state and federal wildlife agencies but bans breeding, slaughter, and sale…

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Lane County

Some Restrictions

Lane County's Animal Services Code treats "exotic or dangerous animal" as a regulated category of "animal" and covers…

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Marion County

Some Restrictions

Oregon bars new exotic-animal ownership. Under ORS 609.341 you may not keep an exotic animal without a valid State…

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Salem

Some Restrictions

Oregon regulates exotic pet ownership through ORS 609.305-609.355 and ODFW rules. Exotic animals including primates…

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Pet Limits

Maximum number of cats, dogs, or other companion animals allowed per household, including counts that trigger kennel-license requirements.

Oregon: statewide

StatewideHeavy Restrictions

Oregon prosecutes animal hoarding under ORS 167.325 through 167.333, with felony charges available when 11 or more…

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Multnomah County

Significant Restrictions

Animal Services can order an owner to abate a nuisance when animals exceed what they can reasonably care for, and…

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Albany

Some Restrictions

In the City of Albany, Oregon, no person, family, or business can keep more than two dogs past six months of age on a…

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Clackamas County

Some Restrictions

Clackamas County sets no hard cap on dogs, but owning more than one dog requires a Multiple Dog License, granted only…

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Eugene

Some Restrictions

Eugene doesn't set a flat numeric pet cap; instead, keeping four or more dogs over six months old on one property makes…

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Hillsboro

Some Restrictions

Hillsboro caps household pets at 3 dogs, 3 cats, and 4 rabbits per property under HMC 6.20.030, exempting young…

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Josephine County

Some Restrictions

In unincorporated Josephine County, owning more than six adult dogs without a fancier or rescue permit requires a…

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Lane County

Some Restrictions

Lane County does not set a hard household pet cap, but keeping three or more dogs over six months old on a premises is…

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Marion County

Some Restrictions

In Marion County's Rural Zone Code, a conditional use permit is required in the RS and AR zones if there are more than…

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Springfield

Some Restrictions

In the City of Springfield, Oregon, Municipal Code Section 5.404 caps residential dog ownership at three adult dogs per…

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Cat Rules

Rules specific to cats, outdoor roaming, feral cat colonies, leash laws (yes, some cities require them), and licensing requirements.

Clackamas County

Some Restrictions

Clackamas County requires cats, like dogs, to stay on a leash no longer than six feet whenever they're in a county…

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Lane County

Some Restrictions

Lane County does not license or leash cats, but a cat is an "animal" under the code, so it is covered by the…

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Marion County

Some Restrictions

Marion County does not license cats or set an at-large rule for them the way it does for dogs. Cats fall under the…

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Multnomah County

Some Restrictions

Multnomah County requires owners to license dogs and cats by age six months under County Code § 13.101, but § 13.002…

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Albany

Light Restrictions

In the City of Albany, Oregon, domestic cats are a public nuisance in six listed instances, including loud or frequent…

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Bend

Light Restrictions

In the City of Bend, domestic cats are exempt from the citywide at-large and animal-waste requirements that apply to…

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Corvallis

Light Restrictions

In the City of Corvallis, domestic cats are declared personal property under the Municipal Code and, unlike dogs, may…

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Hillsboro

Light Restrictions

Hillsboro exempts cats from its at-large prohibition, so they may roam freely, but caps ownership at 3 cats per…

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Beaverton

Few Restrictions

Beaverton's animal-at-large ordinance names domestic cats as its sole exemption, so cats may roam free citywide and…

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Springfield

Few Restrictions

In the City of Springfield, Oregon, the animal control code regulates dogs and farm animals running at large but…

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Veterinary Clinic Zoning

Where veterinary clinics, animal hospitals, and emergency animal-care facilities may be located, including overnight-boarding and noise buffers.

Lane County

Significant Restrictions

Veterinary clinics aren't a listed permitted or conditional use in Lane County's Rural Residential (RR) zone under LC…

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Springfield

Significant Restrictions

In the City of Springfield, Oregon, Table 3.2.320 of the Springfield Development Code allows an Animal Hospital, Animal…

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Benton County

Some Restrictions

Unincorporated Benton County allows commercial kennels as an accessory use to a veterinary clinic or pet shop in any…

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Corvallis

Some Restrictions

The City of Corvallis splits veterinary clinics into two zoning categories under its Land Development Code: 'Animal…

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Hillsboro

Some Restrictions

Veterinary clinics in Hillsboro are regulated as animal service facilities: indoor or supervised-yard operations need…

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Medford

Some Restrictions

Medford Code Section 10.814 keeps veterinary clinics and animal hospitals at least 100 feet from residential lots…

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Portland

Some Restrictions

Portland zones veterinary clinics and boarding-only kennels under the Retail Sales And Service use category, so each…

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Salem

Some Restrictions

Salem requires small animal veterinary services to keep operations inside soundproof buildings and, if outdoor dog runs…

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Tigard

Some Restrictions

In the City of Tigard, Oregon, a veterinary office outside of a campus setting is categorized as Office under Section…

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Washington County

Some Restrictions

In unincorporated Washington County's Transit Oriented Districts, a veterinary office without outdoor kennels needs a…

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Josephine County

Light Restrictions

In the Rural Industrial zone outside the Grants Pass and Cave Junction urban growth boundaries, § 19.63.020(B)(15) of…

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Multnomah County

Light Restrictions

Multnomah County's zoning code excludes veterinary clinics and animal hospitals from the dog-kennel conditional-use…

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Bird Protection

Local rules protecting specific bird species (LAMC §53.55), including penalties for trapping or harming protected species and bird-safe building design.