How many dogs or cats you can keep in Sooke
How many dogs or cats can I keep in Sooke?
Short answer
In Sooke, you can keep no more than four dogs (over four months old) on a parcel at one time, unless you run a licensed kennel or similar business. The bylaw sets no limit on cats.
Key facts
| Dogs allowed | No more than four dogs on any parcel at one time (a dog is one apparently over four months old), except in the lawful operation of a licensed boarding or breeding kennel, a veterinary facility, an animal supply store or a commercial animal groomer.Animal Regulation and Impounding Bylaw No. 392, s. 3; Animal Regulation and Impounding Bylaw No. 392, s. 2(j) · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06Official wordingNo person shall keep more than four dogs on any parcel of land in the District at any one time except in the lawful operation of a boarding kennel or breeding kennel under this Bylaw, a veterinary facility, an animal supply store or commercial animal groomer service. “Dog” means a dog apparently over the age of four months; |
|---|---|
| Cats allowed | None set. Sooke's Animal Regulation and Impounding Bylaw sets no limit on cats.Read: Animal Regulation and Impounding Bylaw No. 392 |
| Other animal limits | In small-scale multi-unit residential, multi-family and comprehensive development zones: no livestock or male poultry on lots under 2,000 m²; female poultry (hens) not allowed under 600 m², and up to 6 in enclosed runs on lots over 600 m² but under 2,000 m².Zoning Bylaw No. 600, s. 3.5 · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06Official wordinga) The keeping of livestock and male poultry is prohibited on lots less than b) The keeping of female poultry is prohibited on lots less than 600 m 2 in area; c) The keeping of up to 6 female poultry in enclosed runs is permitted on lots |
| Exceptions | A licensed breeding or boarding kennel may keep the number of dogs its licence allows (breeding kennel dogs must be registered with a bona fide kennel club or associated with other bona fide dog clubs). Vets, pet stores and commercial groomers are exempt. Puppies under four months are not 'dogs', so are not counted.Animal Regulation and Impounding Bylaw No. 392, ss. 3, 4, 7, 8, 9; Fees and Charges Bylaw No. 752, Schedule 2 · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06Official wordingNo person shall operate a boarding kennel or a breeding kennel in the District unless a valid and subsisting licence for the current year Breeding kennel licences shall only be issued to persons who are engaged in the breeding of a dog or dogs and whose dog or dogs are registered with a bona fide kennel club or associated with other bona fide dog clubs. No person shall keep more than four dogs on any parcel of land in the District at any one time except in the lawful operation of a boarding kennel “Dog” means a dog apparently over the age of four months; Breeding kennel having four or less dogs $75.00 Boarding kennel $200.00 |
| Fine | $50 (municipal ticket, 'Excess dogs on property', s. 3). Dogs beyond a kennel licence's number: $50; no kennel licence: $75.Municipal Ticket Information Bylaw No. 836, Schedule B1 · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06Official wording3 Excess dogs on property $50.00 4 No kennel licence $75.00 |
| Bylaw | Bylaw No. 392, Animal Regulation and Impounding Bylaw, 2009Animal Regulation and Impounding Bylaw No. 392, title · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06Official wordingBylaw No. 392, Animal Regulation and Impounding Bylaw, 2009 |
How it works
The Animal Regulation and Impounding Bylaw No. 392 allows no more than four dogs on any parcel at one time. A dog is one apparently over four months old, so younger puppies are not counted. Bylaw 392 sets no limit on cats.
The exceptions are the lawful operation of a licensed boarding or breeding kennel, a veterinary facility, an animal supply store or a commercial animal groomer. A kennel may keep the number of dogs its licence allows.
Good to know
- The ticket for excess dogs on a property is $50. Dogs beyond a kennel licence's number are $50; running a kennel without a licence is $75.
- In small-scale multi-unit residential, multi-family and comprehensive development zones, the Zoning Bylaw bans livestock and male poultry on lots under 2,000 m², and allows up to 6 hens only on lots over 600 m² and under 2,000 m². See the chickens answer.
- No combined limit across all pets was found. Ask Bylaw Services at 250-642-1634 or bylaw@sooke.ca.
Official forms and pages
The same question in other places
Metchosin · Langford · Colwood · Highlands · View Royal · Esquimalt
Sources
- Information Bulletins | District of Sooke (read 2026-11-06)
- Animal Regulation and Impounding Bylaw No. 392 (PDF), District of Sooke (read 2026-11-06)
- Fees and Charges Bylaw No. 752 (PDF), District of Sooke (read 2026-11-06)
- Municipal Ticket Information Bylaw No. 836 (PDF), District of Sooke (read 2026-11-06)
- Zoning Bylaw No. 600 (PDF), District of Sooke (read 2026-11-06)
Checked by script, not yet by a person: the official wording behind 5 of 6 facts was matched to the official text; 1 is recorded as not set. How answers are checked.