Essex County, NJ Animal Ordinances: Dog Leash Laws (2026)

New Jersey state law - N.J.S.A. 4:19-15.1 through 4:19-15.32 - provides the statewide framework for dog licensing, rabies vaccination, and dangerous-dog hearings. Under N.J.S.A. 4:19-15.2, every dog 7 months of age or older must be licensed annually by the municipal clerk of the town where the owner resides; a current rabies vaccination is required. Counties in NJ generally do not run residential animal control - that authority sits with municipalities under N.J.S.A. 4:19-15.16 (which lets municipalities regulate dogs running at large, leash requirements, and dog parks). Essex County's animal-control footprint is limited to the Essex County Park System: under Essex County Park Commission regulations enforced by the Essex County Park Police (973.268.3500), all dogs in county parks (Branch Brook Park, Eagle Rock Reservation, South Mountain Reservation, Verona Park, Brookdale Park, etc.) must be on a leash no longer than 6 feet, and several reservations have designated off-leash dog runs (e.g., South Mountain). Outside county parks, Newark Municipal Code Title 7 (Animal Control) requires all dogs to be restrained on a leash no longer than 6 feet when off the owner's premises and prohibits dogs running at large. East Orange, Bloomfield, Montclair, West Orange, Maplewood, and Irvington each have their own animal control ordinances with substantively similar leash rules. Animal control intake for many Essex municipalities is contracted to local shelters (Associated Humane Societies - Newark Branch, 973.824.7080). New Jersey's dangerous-dog procedure under N.J.S.A. 4:19-17 et seq. is handled in the municipal court of the town where an incident occurs.