Brockton, MA Animal Ordinances: Dog Leash Laws (2026)

Section 3-4 defines "restraint" as "a leash not more than six (6) feet long, or a fenced-in area or pen as provided in this chapter," and defines "at large" as being off the owner's premises and not under the owner's or a family member's control by that restraint. Section 3-7(a) applies the restraint requirement to every dog on any public property, expressly naming parks, cemeteries and public ways. Section 3-8(i) goes further: a dog cannot be on the private property of another person at all, even on a leash, without the owner's or occupant's specific permission, and no dog may be in a public street or place unless "effectively restrained by a chain or leash not exceeding six (6) feet in length."

An unrestrained dog is picked up by the animal control officer and impounded under Section 3-8(a)-(b), and held a minimum of seven days unless the owner reclaims it. Reclaiming costs an administrative fee of $38 plus $16 for each day impounded, per Section 3-8(d), on top of any citation penalty. A first offense under Section 3-8(g) carries a $50 fine; a second or later offense within the same licensing period carries $100, due within 21 days or a criminal warrant issues before a magistrate. A dog picked up unrestrained on three separate occasions can be surgically sterilized and microchipped before the city returns it, with the owner billed for the procedure plus a $100 transportation fee, under Section 3-7(f). Three or more violations in one licensing period also lets the city revoke every license the owner holds, per Section 3-8(h).