Weber County, UT Animal Ordinances: Breed Restrictions (2026)

Weber County Code Title 6 regulates dangerous dogs by conduct, not breed: Section 6-1-3 defines a 'dangerous animal' as one that has inflicted a serious bite, killed a domestic animal off its owner's property, caused another animal's euthanasia, or violated restrictions after already being found 'potentially dangerous.' A 'potentially dangerous animal' is any animal that chases or menaces a person in public, or has a documented tendency to attack. The animal control director makes the declaration from animal control's own records or another agency's report.

Once an animal is declared potentially dangerous, Section 6-4-16 lets animal control impose specific keeping restrictions and requires the owner to use all reasonable means to keep it from injuring anyone. A declared dangerous animal is confined further: it must stay indoors or in a locked, kennel-type enclosure built to keep children out, stop the animal from escaping or digging out, and shelter it from weather. Outside the enclosure, the animal must be muzzled and under a responsible adult's direct control on a restraint device; the muzzle must still let the animal breathe and see.

If the owner will not consent to the county's chosen remedy, Sections 6-4-14 and 6-4-15 send the case to the local justice court, which rules on disposition and can order abatement measures; the owner then reimburses animal control's impoundment costs. Abatement by relocation is not available once an animal is found dangerous under 6-4-15; euthanasia after consent, or court-ordered abatement, are the listed paths. Section 6-4-17 makes it a class B misdemeanor for the owner of a potentially dangerous or dangerous animal to let it run at large or to violate any restriction imposed under this chapter.