Dearborn Heights, MI Animal Ordinances: Dog Leash Laws (2026)
Key Facts
- Leash/at-large rule
- City Code § 6-94
- Running at large
- Unrestrained off owner's own property
- Exemption
- Guide dogs performing duties, § 6-94(c)
- Fine class
- B: $150/$300/$600, § 1-11
- Related duty
- Pick up droppings, § 6-95
Summary
City Code § 6-94 bars a dog or animal from running at large anywhere in Dearborn Heights and requires a leash or adequate owner control whenever the animal is on a public area or another person's private property. Guide dogs performing their duties are exempt from both rules.
(a)No owner or person harboring or keeping a dog or other animal shall suffer the same to run at large at any time within the city. "Running at large" is used in this article to mean wandering unrestrained on any street, alley, common or other public or open spaces or other places within the limits of the city, or upon any private property other than that of the owner of such animal.(b)It shall be unlawful for any dog or animal, except when on a leash, or when adequately controlled by the owner or his or her agent, to use or be upon any public area, or on the private property of any individual without the property owner's, or his or her agent's consent, in the city.(c)The provisions of this section shall not apply to guide dogs performing their duties.
Full Breakdown
Section 6-94(a) makes it unlawful for an owner or person harboring or keeping a dog or other animal to suffer it to run at large at any time in the city, defining "running at large" as wandering unrestrained on any street, alley, common, other public or open space, or any private property other than the owner's own. Subsection (b) separately requires that a dog or animal be on a leash, or adequately controlled by the owner or the owner's agent, before it uses or is present on any public area, or on another person's private property without that person's consent.
Subsection (c) exempts guide dogs performing their duties from both rules. The leash requirement works alongside § 6-95's sanitation rule, which obligates the person in charge of an animal to immediately remove its droppings from public thoroughfares, sidewalks, parks and any private property lacking permission, and with § 6-92, which requires a female animal in heat to stay confined or leashed at all times. Chapter 6's animal control officer, defined at § 6-2, enforces the leash requirement, and an animal found running at large is subject to being taken to the city's animal shelter, also defined at § 6-2, pending its owner's response.
Violations & Fines
Chapter 6's Class B civil infraction schedule under City Code § 1-11(e) applies to a § 6-94 violation: $150.00 for a first offense, $300.00 for a second offense within a year, and $600.00 for a third or subsequent offense within that year, plus costs, under § 1-11(f)(5). An animal picked up while running at large can also be taken to the city's animal shelter pending owner response.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I have to leash my dog in Dearborn Heights?
What counts as a dog running at large?
Are guide dogs exempt from the leash law?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Dearborn Heights
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