Greenwich, CT Animal Ordinances: Dog Leash Laws (2026)

Section 4-115 of the Code of Ordinances, part of Article 9 Animal Control, gives the Greenwich Board of Health authority to designate specific public areas or public buildings as restricted or nonrestricted zones and to apply one or more of four listed conditions. The leash rule is the first: in a designated restricted area, dogs must be kept on a secure leash less than ten feet in length. The same subsection lets the Board pair that rule with a carve-out, a designated fenced-in area where dogs may run off-leash under posted rules the Board approves.

The remaining designations let the Board bar dogs from an area or building altogether, except guide dogs trained to assist a handicapped person, and require dog owners to promptly remove their dog's feces in a designated area, again exempting guide dogs. Because the ordinance operates by designation rather than a blanket townwide leash law, the actual leash requirement, the off-leash dog park, and any total-restriction zone all depend on which areas the Board of Health has formally designated; Section 4-115(b) requires that designation and its restrictions become effective three days after a legal notice is published in a newspaper of general circulation in town.

Violations of Article 9, including an unleashed dog in a posted area, are penalized under Section 4-117: a fine of not more than $100 for each violation, with each day of a continuing violation treated as a separate offense, enforced by the Director of Health or the Animal Control Division of the Greenwich Police Department.