Lexington, KY Animal Ordinances: Dog Leash Laws (2026)

Section 4-19 makes it unlawful for any dog to run at large anywhere in the urban county, with a narrow exception for hounds or hunting dogs engaged in lawful hunting on property authorized for that purpose. On the owner's or harborer's own property, a dog must be confined behind a fence, within an enclosed area, or otherwise securely restrained at all times, unless it is with the owner and under the owner's direct control and supervision. Off the property, a dog may only be out if restrained by a properly fitting collar or harness physically attached to a leash or tether of appropriate material and weight capable of physically restraining it.

Any dog found on public or private property without the property owner's permission and unattended by its owner is presumed to be running at large and may be impounded under Section 4-21, where it is held at the urban county animal shelter for a minimum of five days for a dog and three days for a cat before it may be disposed of if unclaimed. A companion rule, Section 4-17, separately bars taking a dog into any public park unless it is on a leash or chain, and Section 4-18 bars letting a female dog in heat run at large at all, on top of the general leash and confinement duties Section 4-19 imposes.