Garland County, AR Animal Ordinances: Dog Leash Laws (2026)

Garland County Code § 10-19 governs dogs at large across the unincorporated county. A dog is not automatically in violation for being off-leash on common property, but it must wear a current county tag issued by a licensed Garland County veterinarian; an owner of a properly tagged dog roaming common areas of the unincorporated county is not cited under this article. An untagged loose dog is classified as 'stray' and, once picked up by county authority, is held at an approved facility. If nobody claims it within five days, the facility may release it for adoption or humanely euthanize it.

An owner who wants a stray back must pay a boarding fee set by separate ordinance and on file with the county clerk before the dog is returned. Sec. 10-19(d) also lets the county immediately euthanize any injured, diseased or contagious dog that is in obvious pain or poses a contagion risk to humans or other animals, without the five-day hold. Three narrow exceptions exclude a dog from being 'at large': dogs entered in a licensed show or competition on grounds set aside for that purpose, dogs secured behind a gate, fence or in a carrier on private property with the owner's consent, and dogs used for official law-enforcement or disabled-person purposes.

Complaints go to the Sheriff's Office or animal control under Sec. 10-20; a bite complaint triggers mandatory quarantine, and any owner found out of compliance is cited to district court. Failing to appear at either of two hearings, or to comply with a court order within five days of the second, results in the animal being deemed abandoned and subject to euthanasia. Article II applies only outside cities of the first class within the county, per Sec. 10-22's exemption for those municipal residents.