Appleton, WI Animal Ordinances: Dog Leash Laws (2026)

Section 3-15 makes the owner or caretaker responsible for keeping every animal within the limits of their own property; the instant it leaves, it must be restrained so it does not run at large or become a public nuisance. The chapter defines 'running at large' broadly in subsection (a): it covers every place in the city except the owner's own premises, including streets, alleys, sidewalks and other public areas, and even private property belonging to someone else. Restraint itself is defined in §3-1 as an animal secured by a leash of no more than eight feet, under the control of a person capable of commanding it, or kept within the real property limits of its owner.

An animal that repeatedly runs at large is separately classified a public nuisance under §3-1, adding exposure beyond the leash violation itself. When Police Department personnel find an unrestrained or nuisance animal, §3-16 authorizes them to catch and impound it, including pursuing the animal onto the owner's or another person's private property; interfering with that pursuit is itself a violation. An owner reclaiming an impounded animal must pay the accrued impoundment fee and satisfy the licensing requirements of Article II, Division 2. Any animal not reclaimed within seven days becomes the property of the City or the humane society and is placed for adoption or humanely euthanized.