Portsmouth, VA Animal Ordinances: Breed Restrictions (2026)

1 governs dangerous and vicious dogs without regard to breed. Subsection (c) is explicit: no canine or canine crossbreed shall be found to be a dangerous dog or vicious dog solely because it is a particular breed, nor shall the city council prohibit the ownership of a particular breed of canine or canine crossbreed. The same subsection protects dogs that bite while defending themselves, their owner, their property, or their offspring, and exempts police dogs performing official duties, plus dogs responding to a trespasser or someone committing a crime or provoking the animal.

Instead of a breed list, Portsmouth uses an individualized court process: an animal control officer who believes a specific dog is dangerous or vicious applies to a magistrate for a summons, and a general district court judge decides after hearing evidence. A dog found 'dangerous' triggers requirements under subsections (d) through (f): the owner must obtain a dangerous-dog registration certificate from the city treasurer within 45 days, display a uniform tag on the dog's collar, prove current rabies vaccination, post warning signs on the property, have the dog tattooed or microchipped, spay or neuter it, and carry at least $100,000 in liability insurance; on the owner's property the dog must be confined indoors or in a locked six-foot enclosure, and off the property it must be muzzled and leashed. 2-6562. 1(i), and the court may order the animal seized and euthanized for noncompliance.