Bakersfield, CA Animal Ordinances: Dog Leash Laws (2026)

220, 'Dogs at Large, Impounding,' makes it unlawful for any dog, whether or not licensed and vaccinated, to stray, run, or in any other manner be at large in or upon any public highway, street, sidewalk, alley, lane, park or other public place, or upon the property of any person other than the animal owner, without the permission of the owner or occupant of that property. The prohibition applies citywide and does not turn on whether the dog wears a leash, an unattended or unrestrained dog anywhere off its owner's own property violates the section regardless of collar or tag.

Subsection B builds the citizen-impoundment mechanism into the same section: any person who finds a dog at large may take it up and hold it, but that person must notify animal control and the shelter within four hours of taking custody (or within four hours after the shelter reopens if it is closed when the dog is found), and must surrender the dog to the sheltering agency or animal control on demand. 150. The section traces to the city's 1999 animal-control ordinance (Ord. 3940) and was last amended by Ord. 5146 in 2023.