Sherman, TX Animal Ordinances: Breed Restrictions (2026)
Key Facts
- Test
- Unprovoked attack or acts causing fear of bodily injury
- Owner deadline
- Fifteen (15) days after owner learns dog is dangerous
- Insurance
- At least $200,000.00 liability coverage
- Annual registration
- $200.00 fee, tag displayed at all times
- Civil penalty
- Not to exceed $10,000.00
- Public outings
- Muzzled, leash no longer than six (6) feet
Summary
In the City of Sherman, Texas, the dangerous dog rules turn on a dog's conduct, not its breed. An owner learning a dog is dangerous has fifteen (15) days to remove it, euthanize it, or register it with a secure enclosure, liability insurance of at least $200,000.00, a microchip, and proof of sterilization. Annual registration costs $200.00.
(a) Not later than fifteen (15) days after a person learns that he is the owner of a dangerous dog, the owner shall, in accordance with the order of the court or determination of the animal services supervisor: (1) Remove the dangerous dog from within the city limits and within the area immediately contiguous and adjacent to the city limits, extending for a total distance of 5,000 feet. ... (2) Humanely euthanize the dangerous dog; or (3) Register and establish compliance with all of the following requirements of this section, at the owner's expense, to the animal services supervisor before the dog is released from the animal services facility or other state approved quarantine facility. (A) Register.Register the dangerous dog with the animal services supervisor and maintain current registration at all times; ... (C) Insure.Acquire and maintain liability insurance coverage in an amount of at least two hundred thousand dollars and no cents ($200,000.00) to cover damages resulting from an attack by the dangerous dog and provide proof of the required liability insurance coverage to the animal services supervisor.
Full Breakdown
Chapter 2 of the Sherman Code of Ordinances defines a dangerous dog by what the dog does. Under § 2.01.001 it is a dog that makes an unprovoked attack on a person that causes bodily injury outside an enclosure reasonably certain to prevent the dog from leaving on its own, or commits unprovoked acts outside such an enclosure that cause a person to reasonably believe the dog will attack and cause bodily injury. The definition names no breed.
The process starts with a sworn written report to the animal services supervisor under § 2.03.002, or a determination by animal services. Under § 2.03.004 the owner gets written notice and must deliver the dog to animal services within five (5) days. The municipal court holds a hearing no later than the tenth day after impoundment, and the owner has ten (10) days to file a notice of appeal and the appeal bond with the municipal court clerk. A dog that caused death or serious bodily injury follows § 2.03.003: a seizure warrant, a hearing within ten (10) days, and humane euthanasia unless a listed exception applies, such as an injured person at least eight (8) years of age who was trespassing in an enclosure.
Once an owner learns the dog is dangerous, § 2.03.005 gives fifteen (15) days to remove it from the city limits and the 5,000 feet beyond, euthanize it, or register it. Registration requires a secure enclosure inspected and approved by the supervisor, liability insurance of at least $200,000.00 naming the city as certificate holder, a lifetime microchip within seven (7) days of notice or forty-eight (48) hours of an unsuccessful appeal, and proof of sterilization. Extensions total no more than thirty (30) additional days. Section 2.03.006 sets the annual registration fee at two hundred dollars ($200.00) and prohibits dogs declared dangerous by another jurisdiction within the city limits and 5,000 feet beyond. Section 2.03.010 requires a muzzle and a leash no longer than six (6) feet with a capable person in immediate physical control, and cloth muzzles are prohibited.
Violations & Fines
Under § 2.03.008, an owner of a dangerous dog commits an offense if the dog makes an unprovoked attack on a person outside its enclosure causing bodily injury, attacks a domestic animal or domestic fowl while at-large causing bodily injury or death, or if the owner performs a prohibited act or fails to perform a required act. In addition to criminal prosecution, the civil penalty is not to exceed ten thousand dollars ($10,000.00), collected through a suit by an attorney with civil jurisdiction and retained by the municipality.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Can a dangerous dog go out in public in Sherman?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Sherman
How Sherman compares: Cities with No Dog Breed Restrictions·Texas rules heatmap·Compare Sherman to another location·View the Texas animal ordinances overview
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