Mount Prospect, IL Animal Ordinances: Breed Restrictions (2026)

Article IV of Chapter 20 of the Mount Prospect Village Code regulates dangerous animals by conduct, not breed. Section 20.402 lets the animal control official declare an animal dangerous when it is known to have inflicted a bite or has otherwise attacked a person or other domestic animal. Notice is served in person or by posting on the front door of the premises where the animal is kept. Section 20.101 defines a dangerous animal as one declared or designated under article IV, and section 20.401 makes it unlawful to have custody of, own, possess or maintain one except in accordance with that article.

Section 20.403 sets the confinement standard. The animal must stay on the owner's premises inside a residence or in a five-sided enclosure (four sides and a roof) designed to prevent escape. An enclosure with no floor secured to the sides must be embedded into the ground no less than two feet deep. Under subsection B the animal leaves only for exercise, grooming, veterinary care, a court order or to leave the village in a motor vehicle. Outside the premises it must be securely muzzled, restrained by a chain or leash not over six feet long connected to a three point harness, and under the constant physical restraint of a person at least eighteen years old. The owner must post a sign reading Warning - Dangerous Animal - Keep Away!, legible from ten feet.

The declaration can be vacated after eighteen months under section 20.404, but only if the owner shows at least twenty five hours of remediation for aggressive behavior, and the decision rests in the sole discretion of the animal control official. Section 20.207(A)(13) bars possessing a dangerous animal if the owner was found guilty of violating article IV. Appeals go through section 20.501: a written request within five working days, with the hearing held within ten working days before the Cook County circuit court, the animal control official or the village administrative adjudication hearing officer, chosen by the Village.