Dothan, AL Animal Ordinances: Dog Leash Laws (2026)

City Code § 10-16 states the restraint requirement plainly: a dog owner shall keep his or her dog under restraint at all times, and it is unlawful for the owner to allow the dog to be at large off the owner's property, on the property of another without that owner's consent, or on public streets or rights-of-way unless under the restraint of a leash. Section 10-1 defines when a dog counts as "restrained": confined in a building, fenced pen, or fenced yard on the owner's or a consenting neighbor's property; on a leash; tethered under the conditions in § 10-17; or peacefully on the owner's own property while wearing current rabies tags (unless the dog was chased home by animal control or is the subject of an outstanding written complaint).

Animal control officers and Dothan police officers enforce restraint under § 10-3, and § 10-8 authorizes impoundment whenever an officer has reasonable cause to believe a dog is running at large. An owner whose dog is picked up at large can be cited for violating the restraint provision even if the animal is released back to them instead of impounded, per § 10-8(c). Dogs found at large in a resident's own humane trap under § 10-5(e) are likewise presumed to have been allowed to run at large. Owners who let a dog run loose can also be held civilly liable for resulting damage under § 10-22.