Lancaster requires dogs to be leashed and under control of their owner whenever off the owner's property. Chapter 97 of the City Code works in tandem with the Pennsylvania Dog Law (3 P.S. §459-101 et seq.), which mandates statewide confinement, annual county licensing, and rabies vaccination for all dogs three months and older.
Lancaster City Code Chapter 97 (Animals) requires every dog in the City to be either confined on the owner's property or under physical leash control when off-property. There is no off-leash exception in city parks except inside designated dog-park enclosures (Lancaster's Buchanan Park has a fenced dog park). Owners are required to immediately scoop and properly dispose of their dog's waste from sidewalks, alleys, parks, and other public or private property they do not own — a long-standing pet-waste rule in city ordinance.
State law overlays the local rule. The Pennsylvania Dog Law (3 P.S. §459-101 et seq.) requires every dog three months of age or older to be licensed annually through the Lancaster County Treasurer; an annual license costs roughly $8.70 (spayed/neutered) or $10.70 (intact), with lifetime licenses available for microchipped or tattooed dogs. PA Dog Law §459-305 makes it unlawful for an owner to allow a dog to run at large unaccompanied off the owner's premises. Pennsylvania's rabies law (3 Pa.C.S. §455.1) requires vaccination at three months and a booster within the next year.
Dangerous-dog cases are handled under PA Dog Law §459-502-A and are behavior-based — there is no statewide breed ban. PA Libre's Law (Act 10 of 2017) prohibits tethering dogs outside for more than 9 hours in 24, or 30 minutes when temperatures are below 32°F or above 90°F.
A first leash or stray-dog violation under PA Dog Law is a summary offense with fines from $25 to $300 plus costs. Repeat offenses, dog-bite incidents, or failing to license can rise to $300–$1,000. Lancaster City citations under Chapter 97 carry similar summary-offense ranges. Failure to scoop poop is typically a $25–$100 first-offense fine. Dangerous-dog adjudication can require muzzling, secure enclosure, and $50,000 liability insurance.
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See how Lancaster's dog leash laws rules stack up against other locations.
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