Pickens County, SC Animal Ordinances: Dog Leash Laws (2026)

Pickens County's animal ordinance does not require every dog to be leashed at all times. Section 4-1 defines "at-large" as an animal that is off the property of its owner or another consenting landowner and "not under restraint," and § 4-4(a)(1) makes it unlawful for an owner or custodian to allow an animal "to run at large off of property owned, rented or controlled by him so as to constitute a nuisance or menace to the person or property of another." The rule is nuisance-triggered rather than an unconditional confinement mandate: a dog that leaves its owner's yard is not automatically in violation unless its being at large rises to a nuisance or menace to a person or their property.

Section 4-9 supplies the enforcement mechanic for a trespassing or at-large dog that has already caused damage. A property owner whose real or personal property, including shrubbery, flower beds or gardens, has been damaged, disturbed, defecated or urinated upon by a trespassing animal can file a complaint with the animal control officer. The officer must then notify the known owner by personal delivery, property posting, or certified mail; if there is no response within 72 hours, the officer may capture the animal on the complainant's property using a humane method such as a cage-type trap. If the owner is unknown, the animal is impounded under the ten-day hold procedure in § 4-8, and a complainant who is not compensated after the owner is notified can seek restitution in magistrate's court.

Female dogs in season are held to a stricter standard under § 4-4(b): they may not roam unrestrained anywhere in the county and must be confined in a building or secure enclosure out of public view, even where breeding is planned.