New Hanover County, NC Animal Ordinances: Dog Leash Laws (2026)

Section 5-9(a) makes it unlawful for any owner of a dog, cat, or ferret 'to allow it to run at large off the premises of its owner' anywhere in unincorporated New Hanover County; incorporated Wilmington, Carolina Beach, Kure Beach, and Wrightsville Beach enforce their own separate leash rules. The code defines 'at large' as being off the owner's property and not under the restraint of a competent person, and 'restraint' as controlled by an attended leash, inside a vehicle, or within a secure enclosure. Under § 5-9(b), an officer who personally observes a loose animal can impound it or return it to the owner, at the officer's discretion.

Under § 5-9(c), if instead a complaint comes in, the officer must investigate first, and once probable cause of a violation is established, can issue a citation, a warning, or take other action authorized by the chapter or state law. An owner cited under § 5-9(d) can discharge the citation by paying the current fee schedule set by the Board of Commissioners; an impounded animal must be redeemed under § 5-17, and a second violation within one year raises the redemption fee under § 5-17(c).

00, plus a separate civil citation option set by the Board. A stricter rule applies at the beach: § 5-25 bars dogs entirely, leashed or not, from the public beach and riparian property on Wrightsville Beach Island north of the town boundary between April 1 and September 30 each year, and requires a leash the rest of the year; violations there draw only a civil citation.