Fontana, CA Animal Ordinances: Dog Leash Laws (2026)

Fontana Municipal Code Sec. 4-2 sets the leash standard for every dog taken off its owner's property: a substantial leash of no more than six feet, held by a person able to control the dog, or the dog secured in a vehicle, cage or similar enclosure. At home, owners must keep dogs from leaving the property while unleashed, either through a locked, escape-proof enclosure the dog cannot climb, dig under or jump, or through a tether, chain, cable or trolley strong enough to prevent the dog from reaching the property line or the public right-of-way.

A dog caught running at large, loose or unrestrained can be impounded by the animal control officer for 72 hours; unclaimed dogs are then disposed of under Sec. 4-3, and owners who reclaim an impounded dog owe the reclaiming fee set under Sec. 4-68. The ordinance also bars letting a dog defecate or urinate on a public sidewalk, in the common halls of apartments and hotels, or in buildings open to the public, and it prohibits leaving a female dog in heat unconfined where it will attract stray males.

Puppies under four months old must stay confined or under physical restraint until vaccinated, though the code still allows selling or transporting a puppy that young. Every violation of Sec. 4-2, from an unleashed dog to an unconfined female in season, is a misdemeanor.