Calaveras County, CA Animal Ordinances: Dog Leash Laws (2026)

Section 6.04.030 defines 'at large' for the whole animal-control title as an animal off the premises of its owner and not under restraint by a leash or otherwise under the owner's immediate control. Section 6.10.010, the county's core control law, forbids any owner or custodian from causing or permitting a dog to be at large, whether that happens willfully or just through failing to exercise due care or control. A first or second violation is treated as an infraction under the code's general penalty scheme at Section 1.24.030, punishable by a fine not exceeding fifty dollars for a first offense and not exceeding one hundred dollars for a second offense of the same ordinance within one year.

Section 6.10.010 itself escalates the consequence further: a third violation of the at-large prohibition within a twenty-four-month period is a misdemeanor, which under Section 1.24.020 carries a fine of up to five hundred dollars, up to six months in county jail, or both. The animal control director and animal control officers, established under Chapter 6.06, are the enforcing authority and may impound any dog found running at large under Section 6.08.010(B). Related sections layer on additional restraint duties: Section 6.10.050 bars dogs from public school property, parks and cemeteries unless posted to allow leashed dogs or the dog is participating in an approved class or event, and Section 6.10.060 requires female dogs in heat to be strictly confined.