Exotic pet laws in California
California bans 12 animals of the 52 checked here, the axolotl, capybara and degu among them. None of the rest needs a permit.
Read against the published rules, entries verified 4 August to 5 September 2026. Every entry below quotes the statute or regulation it comes from and carries the date it was last checked.
What California restricts
14 of 52, strictest first. Open one for the rule it comes from.
AxolotlBanned
§ 671(c)(3)(C)(1)
Genus Ambystoma (nonnative tiger salamander group)-(D)
Ambystoma mexicanum sits in the listed genus. The parenthetical describes the group the restriction was aimed at rather than narrowing it, and none of the permit types in § 671.1 covers pet keeping, so there is no route.
Cities and counties here can prohibit what state law permits, so check your local ordinance too.
How this rule works: § 671(b) defines (D) detrimental and (W) welfare. § 671.1(a) lists permit types; none covers pet keeping. The only possession permit, Animal Care, requires lawful possession in California before January 1992.
Checked against the published text on 5 August 2026.
CapybaraBanned
§ 671(c)(2)(J)(1)
Cities and counties here can prohibit what state law permits, so check your local ordinance too.
How this rule works: § 671(b) defines (D) detrimental and (W) welfare. § 671.1(a) lists permit types; none covers pet keeping. The only possession permit, Animal Care, requires lawful possession in California before January 1992.
Checked against the published text on 4 August 2026.
DeguBanned
§ 671(c)(2)(J)(1)
Order Rodentia-Hamsters, Field Mice, Voles, Muskrats, Gerbils, Squirrels, Chipmunks, Woodchucks, and Prairie Dogs. All species (D), except: ... b. Domesticated races of golden hamsters ... and dwarf hamsters of the Genus Phodopus ... d. Domesticated races of guinea pigs of the species Cavia porcellus ... e. Domesticated races of chinchillas of the species Chinchilla laniger
California restricts the whole order and then names five exceptions. Octodon degus is not one of them, which is why the degu is barred here while the chinchilla, a close relative and also a South American caviomorph, is expressly cleared. Section 671.1 permits exist but are not issued for pet keeping.
Cities and counties here can prohibit what state law permits, so check your local ordinance too.
How this rule works: § 671(b) defines (D) detrimental and (W) welfare. § 671.1(a) lists permit types; none covers pet keeping. The only possession permit, Animal Care, requires lawful possession in California before January 1992.
Checked against the published text on 5 August 2026.
FerretBanned
§ 671(c)(2)(K)(5)
Family Mustelidae-All species (D)
Exceptions are otters only.
Cities and counties here can prohibit what state law permits, so check your local ordinance too.
How this rule works: § 671(b) defines (D) detrimental and (W) welfare. § 671.1(a) lists permit types; none covers pet keeping. The only possession permit, Animal Care, requires lawful possession in California before January 1992.
Checked against the published text on 4 August 2026.
Flying squirrelBanned
§ 671(c)(2)(J)(1)
Order Rodentia is restricted as a whole ('All species (D)') except for a specific list of domesticated species (hamsters, rats, mice, guinea pigs, chinchillas); flying squirrels are not among the exceptions. This section number is carried over from this site's prairie-dog research, which cites the same Sciuridae subsection for a different genus in the same family; the exact subsection should be re-confirmed against the primary text before publishing.
Cities and counties here can prohibit what state law permits, so check your local ordinance too.
How this rule works: § 671(b) defines (D) detrimental and (W) welfare. § 671.1(a) lists permit types; none covers pet keeping. The only possession permit, Animal Care, requires lawful possession in California before January 1992.
Checked against the published text on 27 August 2026.
GerbilBanned
§ 671(c)(2)(J)(1)
Order Rodentia is restricted (D) and gerbils are not among the five exceptions, though the order's own heading names them.
Cities and counties here can prohibit what state law permits, so check your local ordinance too.
How this rule works: § 671(b) defines (D) detrimental and (W) welfare. § 671.1(a) lists permit types; none covers pet keeping. The only possession permit, Animal Care, requires lawful possession in California before January 1992.
Checked against the published text on 4 August 2026.
HedgehogBanned
§ 671(c)(2)(D)
Order Insectivora-Shrews, Moles, Hedgehogs, etc. All species (D)
Cities and counties here can prohibit what state law permits, so check your local ordinance too.
How this rule works: § 671(b) defines (D) detrimental and (W) welfare. § 671.1(a) lists permit types; none covers pet keeping. The only possession permit, Animal Care, requires lawful possession in California before January 1992.
Checked against the published text on 4 August 2026.
Prairie dogBanned
§ 671(c)(2)(J)(1)
Cities and counties here can prohibit what state law permits, so check your local ordinance too.
How this rule works: § 671(b) defines (D) detrimental and (W) welfare. § 671.1(a) lists permit types; none covers pet keeping. The only possession permit, Animal Care, requires lawful possession in California before January 1992.
Checked against the published text on 4 August 2026.
Quaker parakeetBanned
§ 671(c)(1)(M)
Family Psittacidae-Parrots, Parakeets: Myiopsitta monachus (Monk or Quaker parakeet) (D)
Cities and counties here can prohibit what state law permits, so check your local ordinance too.
How this rule works: § 671(b) defines (D) detrimental and (W) welfare. § 671.1(a) lists permit types; none covers pet keeping. The only possession permit, Animal Care, requires lawful possession in California before January 1992.
Checked against the published text on 4 August 2026.
Snapping turtleBanned
§ 671(c)(7)(B)
Family Chelyridae-Snapping Turtles: All species (D)
Cities and counties here can prohibit what state law permits, so check your local ordinance too.
How this rule works: § 671(b) defines (D) detrimental and (W) welfare. § 671.1(a) lists permit types; none covers pet keeping. The only possession permit, Animal Care, requires lawful possession in California before January 1992.
Checked against the published text on 4 August 2026.
Sugar gliderBanned
§ 671(c)(2)(C)
Order Marsupialia-Marsupials or Pouched Animals: All species (W)
Cities and counties here can prohibit what state law permits, so check your local ordinance too.
How this rule works: § 671(b) defines (D) detrimental and (W) welfare. § 671.1(a) lists permit types; none covers pet keeping. The only possession permit, Animal Care, requires lawful possession in California before January 1992.
Checked against the published text on 4 August 2026.
Tiger salamanderBanned
§ 671(c)(3)(C)(1)
Genus Ambystoma (nonnative tiger salamander group)-(D)
Cities and counties here can prohibit what state law permits, so check your local ordinance too.
How this rule works: § 671(b) defines (D) detrimental and (W) welfare. § 671.1(a) lists permit types; none covers pet keeping. The only possession permit, Animal Care, requires lawful possession in California before January 1992.
Checked against the published text on 4 August 2026.
Fennec foxConditions apply
§ 671(c)(2)(K)(2)
Family Canidae-All species (W)
Cities and counties here can prohibit what state law permits, so check your local ordinance too.
How this rule works: § 671(b) defines (D) detrimental and (W) welfare. § 671.1(a) lists permit types; none covers pet keeping. The only possession permit, Animal Care, requires lawful possession in California before January 1992.
Checked against the published text on 4 August 2026.
ServalConditions apply
§ 671(c)(2)(K)(1)
Family Felidae-All species (W)
Cities and counties here can prohibit what state law permits, so check your local ordinance too.
How this rule works: § 671(b) defines (D) detrimental and (W) welfare. § 671.1(a) lists permit types; none covers pet keeping. The only possession permit, Animal Care, requires lawful possession in California before January 1992.
Checked against the published text on 4 August 2026.
No restriction found in California
38 of 52. Each was read against the same body of law as the entries above and nothing in it reaches them. Local ordinances and tenancy terms still apply and are not on this map.
- Ackie monitor
- African grey parrot
- Argentine black and white tegu
- Ball python
- Bearded dragon
- Bengal cat
- Blue-tongue skink
- Boa constrictor
- Box turtle
- Burmese python
- California kingsnake
- Chinchilla
- Cockatoo
- Corn snake
- Crested gecko
- Emperor scorpion
- Garter snake
- Giant African millipede
- Green anole
- Green iguana
- Guinea pig
- Hamster
- Hognose snake
- Jackson's chameleon
- Leopard gecko
- Madagascar hissing cockroach
- Milk snake
- Nile monitor
- Rabbit
- Red-eared slider
- Red-footed tortoise
- Rosy boa
- Russian tortoise
- Savannah monitor
- Sulcata tortoise
- Tarantula
- Tokay gecko
- Veiled chameleon
Cite this page
Every entry here is quoted from the statute or regulation it comes from, with the date it was last read against the published text.
Before you rely on this
This page covers state law only. Cities and counties routinely prohibit what California allows, and a lease or HOA agreement can bar an animal that every level of government permits. Check all three, and check them in that order, because the one most likely to stop you is the one closest to your front door.