Our Services:

• Enforcing local animal control laws that protect people, animals and property.
• Transporting sick or injured stray animals to locations that can provide aid.
• Patrolling busy streets for stray, injured and abandoned animals.
• Providing a spay and neuter program to encourage responsible pet ownership.
• Investigating animal bite reports and rabies control cases in cooperation with the Health Department.
• Keeping up-to-date rabies immunization records of licensed pets.
• Providing shelter for stray, lost, abused and abandoned animals.
• Providing educational information to schools and community groups.

Our Programs

The Animal Control Division is responsible for the enforcement of ordinances and state laws pertaining to animals, primarily domestic. These include licensing and vaccination requirements as well as "loose animal", vicious, cruelty and nuisance provisions. In addition, the animal control officer plays a lead role in the enforcement of anti-cruelty regulations. Animal shelter services are provided through a contract with the local humane society. The City of Pacific Grove contracts with the County for the provision of animal control services within the city limits pertaining to wild animals.

DUTIES AND PRIORITIES

In determining enforcement priorities, several factors are taken into consideration such as public safety, animal safety and available personnel resources. The following is a list of some of those services provided by enforcement staff which are considered priorities:

• Vicious & Dangerous Animal/Bites: Immediately responding to reports that an animal has either bitten a person or is menacing the public.
• Animal Cruelty: Checking on the health and well being of animals reportedly being neglected or physically abused.
• Responding to Requests for Service: Assisting other agencies in impounding or identifying the location of dangerous or vicious animals; enforcing animal-related ordinances; investigating complaints (leash law, noise, mountain lion sightings.), impounding stray and surrendered animals; and providing customer assistance and service.
• Patrolling for Stray Animals: Impounding stray animals before they can become a threat to the residents of Pacific Grove or to themselves on the streets or neighborhoods.
• Public Education: Taking a proactive approach in teaching and encouraging responsible pet ownership. Promote the importance of the leash law, population growth, and pet licensing through a combination of enforcement and education.
• Pet Identification: Provide pet licenses to the animal-owning citizens of Pacific Grove and facilitate the pet license acquisition process.

 

ENFORCEMENT GUIDELINES

The Pacific Grove Animal Control Officer enforce all animal related ordinances within the City. Citations are not only a basic tool of enforcement to gain compliance but also serves as an educational tool as well. While Officers must use discretion in deciding whether a violator is issued an infraction notice or a warning, several factors must be taken into consideration by the Officer in making this decision.

The following are some general guidelines to be used by both the Animal Control Officer and patrol officers to ensure that enforcement activities are conducted in a manner that is fair and equitable to all residents.

A Citation shall be issued for violations including, but not limited to leash law violation when the violator:

• Is aware of, but willingly violates the law.
• Has previously been issued a warning, citation or playa exclusion notice for an animal related violation.
• Fails to demonstrate even minimum pet ownership responsibility and is in violation of other animal control ordinances (e.g., no pet license, no watering equipment, no current vaccination, no evident control over the animal).
• Gives false information to the Officer.
• Allows the animal to:
• bite or behave dangerously, aggressively or in a menacing fashion.
• behave unruly; jump up on people.
• fail to respond to commands.
• chase art cars; enter or destroy art installations.
• destroy residential camp property.
• be off-leash in or near a playground, wading pool, beach, athletic field or any area where there is a concentration of children, or on or near a trail or any park area where people are walking, running, picnicking or engaging in other recreational activities where an off-leash animal would be considered by a reasonable person to be disruptive.

A Warning may be issued, at the discretion of the Officer, if the following conditions are met and the violator:

• Is not aware of the law or tried earnestly not to violate.
• Has not previously received animal control code violation warnings, citations for animal related violations.
• Has watering equipment and a valid pet license with the license displayed on the animal.
• Has not allowed the animal bite or behave dangerously, aggressively or in a menacing fashion.

PUBLIC EDUCATION

Gaining voluntary compliance is the goal of any effective enforcement program. In order to achieve this, the public must be knowledgeable not only of ordinances but of the consequences of noncompliance as well. Information regarding animal care and maintenance is available at the police department or from the Animal Control Officer.

PERFORMANCE MEASURES

One of Pacific Grove Animal Control's top priorities is to attempt to reduce animal related violations and achieve an increase in voluntary compliance. This goal will be achieved by vigorous enforcement, public education, and positive reinforcement for responsible pet owners who abide by the law.

WILDLIFE EDUCATION

Pacific Grove Municipal Code Section 10.10.010(a) prohibits the feeding of wild animals It is unlawful for any person to feed or offer food to any animal, or to scatter food, seed or other forms of matter attractive to animals on any public way, street, park or public property in the city of Pacific Grove, or on any property in such city of which such person is not lawfully possessed. (b) It is unlawful for any person to feed, offer food, or in any manner provide food as sustenance or to encourage domesticity, to any nondomesticated animal.

Some homeowners feed deer because they enjoy watching them, and others do so thinking that it will encourage the deer to eat the feed they provide, and leave the flowers and shrubs alone.  The trouble is, the feeding tends to attract even more deer and things can get out of hand pretty fast in the limited acreage found in most backyards.

It is illegal in Pacific Grove to intentionally place or distribute feed, salt blocks or other attractants for deer. People who feed deer do more harm than good, according to the California Department of Fish and Game. One important reason is that deer are the primary prey of mountain lions. Concentrating deer by feeding can attract mountain lions well within the city limits. It may become necessary to kill these lions for public safety.

The normal feeding behavior of deer allows them to spread out as they graze or browse. Artificial feeding disrupts that behavior and prompts deer to crowd together in small areas where they are more likely to be chased by dogs and hit by cars.

Wildlife biologists confirm that deer have a complex digestive system that is not adapted to digest bread and many types of hay. Habituation to artificial feeds that do not meet their nutritional needs often results in deer that are in poor condition. Concentrating deer by putting food out can also increase stress on the deer and hasten the spread of disease.

Download Information on Living with Mountain Lions

To find out more about living with Mountain Lions, please view the pamphlet below, in Adobe Acrobat (.pdf) format.

LIVING WITH CALIFORNIA MOUNTAIN LIONS [172kb]
california department of fish and game brochure