Kauai County, HI Animal Ordinances: Breed Restrictions (2026)

Adopted by Ordinance No. 792 in October 2002, Kaua'i County's Dangerous Dogs article regulates behavior, not breed. Kaua'i County Code § 22-17.1(b) explains that the Council acted under Hawai'i Revised Statutes § 142-75(c), which authorizes counties to regulate owners of dogs that have bitten, injured or maimed a person, and § 22-17.2 defines a "dangerous dog" simply as any dog that attacks a person or animal without provocation, with no breed named anywhere in the article. Section 22-17.3(a) creates the offense of negligent failure to control a dangerous dog when an owner negligently fails to take reasonable measures to prevent an attack and the attack causes bodily injury to a person or maims, seriously injures or kills an animal; that offense is a petty misdemeanor.

The article lists seven provocation scenarios that count as an affirmative defense in § 22-17.2, including a dog defending its owner, defending its own offspring, or responding to being teased, tormented or assaulted by the person attacked. On conviction under § 22-17.3(c), a court can impose a fine of $50 to $1,000, up to 30 days in jail or up to six months' probation instead, and restitution to anyone hurt or whose property was damaged. Section 22-17.3(d) adds mandatory conditions unless the dog is ordered destroyed, including requiring the owner to register current contact information with the County's animal control service contractor.