Fremont, CA Animal Ordinances: Dog Leash Laws (2026)
Key Facts
- Public leash length
- Not to exceed 6 feet
- Governing section
- FMC 6.50.040(b)
- At-home rule
- Confined to premises or fenced yard
- Exceptions
- Service, working, police, trial dogs
- Off-leash areas
- Governed separately by Sec. 6.50.170
Summary
Fremont requires dogs in public places to be on a leash no longer than six feet under Municipal Code Section 6.50.040(b), with exceptions for service dogs, working dogs, and posted off-leash areas. The scout-cited Section 6.50.170 actually governs off-leash area conduct, not the leash length itself.
The dog owner or person with a right to control a dog must keep the dog under direct physical restraint by means of a leash not to exceed six feet in length when the dog is on any public street, public sidewalk, other public place, event on public property, or at any private place or property or common area of any planned development cluster, townhouse, or on any condominium project without the consent of the owner or person in control thereof.
Official source re-checked September 8, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: current through Ordinance 02-2026, passed May 5, 2026).
Full Breakdown
040, 'Restraint of dogs,' requires a dog owner or person with a right to control a dog to keep it confined to the owner's premises or behind a sufficiently high fence when at home, under subsection (a). Subsection (b) sets the public leash rule: on any public street, sidewalk, public place, public property event, or private common area of a planned development, cluster, townhouse, or condominium project without the property controller's consent, the dog must be under direct physical restraint by a leash not exceeding six feet in length.
60, dogs in approved field or obedience trials, and dogs within a posted off-leash area on city-owned land. 170 is a distinct, narrower provision: it governs conduct once a dog is already inside a posted off-leash area, requiring a handler at least 13 years old, barring non-dog animals, limiting dogs to posted operating hours, and capping handlers at two dogs at a time; it does not set the six-foot leash length that governs everywhere else.
Violations & Fines
A dog off its owner's property without a leash of six feet or less, outside the Section 6.50.040(c) exceptions, violates the restraint requirement and can be cited by an animal control officer or seized under the running-at-large provisions of Section 6.50.030, with the dog subject to impoundment under Chapter 6.30.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the maximum leash length in Fremont?
Are there exceptions to Fremont's leash requirement?
Does Section 6.50.170 set the leash length in Fremont?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Fremont
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Dog Leash Laws in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Alameda County handle dog leash laws.