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Department of Health Services

Sonoma County Animal Services

Report an Issue

Black dog on white background

Sonoma County Animal Services is responsible for the enforcement of city and county ordinances and state laws pertaining to animals. This includes: licensing and vaccination requirements, stray animals, dangerous/vicious animals, nuisance provisions, and the enforcement of cruelty regulations.

If you are reporting an emergency situation, such as an injured animal or animal bite, please contact us by phone at (707) 565-7100, Tuesday-Saturday, 9am to 5pm. Outside of these hours, please contact your local police department/sheriff's office to have the call dispatched to our on-call Animal Control Officer.

To report a non-emergency issue, please send us an email to theanimalshelter@sonoma-county.org and include the following information so that we may better assist you: Your name, address and phone number. For animal-related complaints, such as barking, please include the animal owner's address. In order for Sonoma County Animal Services to contact a pet owner regarding a complaint, we must have your name and contact information. Without it, the complaint may go unaddressed. Visit our FORMS section for records requests and Sworn Statements.

Please Note: The County of Sonoma is subject to the California Public Records Act and cannot guarantee the confidentiality of emailed dialogue.


barking dog

How to Report a Barking Dog

barking dog

Who Do I Call?

The location of the barking dog determines who you need to call to report a barking dog. When you call:

  • Please make sure the dog resides within the City of Santa Rosa or Unincorporated Sonoma County.
  • Please be prepared to provide your name and the exact street address of the dog's residence.
  • We will send a letter advising the dog owner of the ordinance against permitting a dog to bark in a way that limits the reasonable comfort of the community, offering guidance for rectifying the situation, and specifying possible consequences of non-compliance with the ordinance.
  • To report a dog outside of the City of Santa Rosa or Unincorporated Sonoma County, please contact the your community's agency below.