Evanston, IL Animal Ordinances: Dog Leash Laws (2026)

Section 9-4-7(A) sets the baseline: all animals except cats shall be kept under restraint. Subsection (B) then bars any animal, leashed or not, from entering a public hall, restaurant, confectionery shop, coffee shop, ice cream or soft drink establishment, office, store, grocery, meat market, bakery, or any other food shop while it's open to the public, though pet stores and food establishments that meet Subsection 7-2-6(D)(5)(j)(1) are excluded from that ban. Subsection (C) goes further for dogs and cats specifically: neither may set foot, even on a leash, on any school property or public bathing beach, or on a path or sidewalk running through one, though the City-designated dog beach under Section 7-11-8 is carved out. Subsection (D) requires dogs and cats to stay on a leash on any public park or playground, or on a path or sidewalk through one. Working service animals are exempt from the whole Section under Subsection (E).

The restraint duty connects to the Chapter's impoundment machinery: Section 9-4-8(A) lets police or the animal control officer seize an unrestrained dog and hold it at a shelter for at least seven days if the owner can't be reached, and an owner has to pay a $10.00 redemption fee plus $3.00 for every day of impoundment to get the dog back, on top of any license fee owed if the dog wasn't already licensed.