---
title: How many dogs or cats you can keep in Oak Bay
question: "How many dogs or cats can I keep in Oak Bay?"
place: Oak Bay, British Columbia, Canada
place_path: ca/bc/oak-bay
category: Pets, animals and wildlife
owner: municipal
owner_body: District of Oak Bay
sources_read: 2026-11-06
review: machine_checked
canonical: "https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/oak-bay/how-many-pets/"
json: "https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/oak-bay/how-many-pets.json"
---

# How many dogs or cats you can keep in Oak Bay

**Question:** How many dogs or cats can I keep in Oak Bay?

**Short answer:** In Oak Bay you may keep no more than two dogs and no more than five cats over four months old on any one premises. Guide and service dogs are not counted. A ticket is $150 ($100 if paid within 30 days).

**Who handles it:** Municipal (District of Oak Bay, https://www.oakbay.ca)  
**Cost:** No fee for the limit itself. A municipal ticket is $150 ($100 if paid within 30 days) for more than two dogs or more than five cats.  
**How long:** The limits apply at all times.  
**Where:**
- Phone: Bylaw Enforcement (Municipal Hall), 250-598-3311
- Phone: Victoria Animal Control Services (contracted), 250-414-0233

## Key facts

- **Dogs allowed:** No more than two dogs over four months old on any one premises. Guide dogs and service dogs are not counted.
  - Source: [Animal Control Bylaw, 1999 (Bylaw No. 4013), s. 44](https://www.oakbay.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/4013-Animal-Control-Bylaw.pdf)
  - Official wording: "With the exception of Guide Dogs and Service Dogs, no more than two dogs" … "over the age of four months shall be kept or harboured on any one premises"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Cats allowed:** No more than five cats over four months old on any one premises.
  - Source: [Animal Control Bylaw, 1999 (Bylaw No. 4013), s. 31](https://www.oakbay.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/4013-Animal-Control-Bylaw.pdf)
  - Official wording: "more than five (5) cats over the age of four months on any one premises"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Other animal limits:** Poultry: 5 on lots up to 1,114 m², 10 on larger lots (residential zones, owner living on the lot). Beehives: 2 on lots up to 930 m², 4 on larger (permit). Farm animals, wild animals, roosters, bantams, pigeons and fur-bearing animals are not allowed.
  - Source: [Animal Control Bylaw, 1999 (Bylaw No. 4013), ss. 20, 26, 30.1](https://www.oakbay.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/4013-Animal-Control-Bylaw.pdf)
  - Official wording: "No person shall keep, harbour, house, or confine within the Municipality any" … "farm animal, wild animal, rooster, bantam, pigeon, or fur bearing animal." … "no more than five (5) poultry may be kept, housed, or confined on any" … "two (2) for a parcel of area less than or equal to 930 square"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Exceptions:** Guide dogs and service dogs are not counted toward the two-dog limit. The dog and cat limits count only animals over four months old, so puppies and kittens under four months are not counted. No kennel exception found in the bylaw.
  - Source: [Animal Control Bylaw, 1999 (Bylaw No. 4013), s. 44](https://www.oakbay.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/4013-Animal-Control-Bylaw.pdf)
  - Official wording: "With the exception of Guide Dogs and Service Dogs" … "over the age of four months shall be kept or harboured on any one premises" … "more than five (5) cats"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Fine:** Municipal ticket: $150 ($100 if paid within 30 days) for more than two dogs; $150 ($100) for more than five cats.
  - Source: [Municipal Ticket Information Bylaw No. 4846, 2023 (consolidated), Sched. 2](https://www.oakbay.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Bylaw-4846-Municipal-Ticket-Info-Consolidate.pdf)
  - Official wording: "More Than Two Dogs 44 $150.00 $100.00" … "More Than Five Cats 31 $150.00 $100.00"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Bylaw:** Animal Control Bylaw, 1999 (Bylaw No. 4013), ss. 31 and 44
  - Source: [Animal Control Bylaw, 1999 (Bylaw No. 4013), title](https://www.oakbay.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/4013-Animal-Control-Bylaw.pdf)
  - Official wording: "BYLAW NO. 4013" … "This Bylaw may be cited as the ANIMAL CONTROL BYLAW, 1999."
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06

## How it works

The [Animal Control Bylaw](<https://www.oakbay.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/4013-Animal-Control-Bylaw.pdf>) allows no more than two dogs over four months old on any one premises, and no more than five cats over four months old. Guide dogs and service dogs are not counted. Puppies and kittens under four months are not counted either.

## Steps

1. Count the dogs and cats over four months old on your premises.
2. Make sure each dog over four months old is licensed (see the dog-licence answer).
3. If you are over a limit, contact Bylaw Enforcement on 250-598-3311.

## Good to know

- No kennel exception was found in the bylaw.
- Poultry: 5 on lots up to 1,114 m², 10 on larger lots, with conditions. Beehives need a permit. Farm animals, wild animals, roosters, bantams, pigeons and fur-bearing animals are not allowed. See the backyard-chickens answer.
- Rodents and domestic rabbits must be confined to the owner's parcel.
- A female dog's births must be reported within one month.
- The ticket is $150 ($100 if paid within 30 days) for more than two dogs, and the same for more than five cats, under [Bylaw No. 4846](<https://www.oakbay.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Bylaw-4846-Municipal-Ticket-Info-Consolidate.pdf>).

## Official forms and pages

- [Animal Control Bylaw, 1999 (Bylaw No. 4013) (PDF)](https://www.oakbay.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/4013-Animal-Control-Bylaw.pdf)

## Related questions

- [Oak Bay dog licences: fees and how to get one](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/oak-bay/dog-licence.md)
- [Oak Bay dog leash rules and off-leash areas](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/oak-bay/dog-leash-rules.md)
- [Oak Bay backyard chickens, bees and livestock rules](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/oak-bay/backyard-chickens.md)
- [Oak Bay bylaw fines and how tickets work](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/oak-bay/bylaw-fines.md)

## The same question elsewhere

- [Dog and cat limits in British Columbia, by municipality](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/how-many-pets.md)
- [Victoria](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/victoria/how-many-pets.md)
- [Saanich](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/saanich/how-many-pets.md)
- [Esquimalt](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/esquimalt/how-many-pets.md)
- [View Royal](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/view-royal/how-many-pets.md)
- [Colwood](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/colwood/how-many-pets.md)
- [Langford](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/langford/how-many-pets.md)

## Sources

- [Animal Control Bylaw, 1999 (Bylaw No. 4013) (PDF)](https://www.oakbay.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/4013-Animal-Control-Bylaw.pdf) (read 2026-11-06)
- [Municipal Ticket Information Bylaw No. 4846, 2023 (consolidated) (PDF)](https://www.oakbay.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Bylaw-4846-Municipal-Ticket-Info-Consolidate.pdf) (read 2026-11-06)
- [Bylaw Enforcement, District of Oak Bay](https://www.oakbay.ca/services/bylaw-enforcement/) (read 2026-11-06)

_Checked by script, not yet by a person: the official wording behind 6 of 6 facts was matched to the official text. Gov Handbook is an independent guide, not affiliated with District of Oak Bay. How answers are checked: https://govhandbook.com/methods/ · Canonical page: https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/oak-bay/how-many-pets/_