Monterey, CA Animal Ordinances: Dog Leash Laws (2026)

Monterey City Code Section 6-10 makes it unlawful for any person having charge, care or control of a dog, whether licensed and vaccinated or not, to allow that dog to run at large on any public or private property in the City. The section defines exactly what counts as restrained: a dog must be led or restrained by a chain, strap, rope or cord attached to its collar or harness and actually held by a person, or made fast to a stationary object. Anything short of that, including a dog simply following its owner off-leash, is treated as running at large.

The section carves out four exceptions. It does not apply to police dogs, to dogs the City itself uses to control wildlife in public areas while they are engaged in that work, to dogs on private property enclosed by a fence or similar structure that the dog's owner lawfully possesses or controls, or to dogs inside a designated dog park. Enforcement runs through Section 6-11, which puts the Chief of Police, designated City personnel, and the agency operating under the joint powers agreement between the City and Monterey County in charge of seizing and impounding dogs found running at large or unlicensed, and gives any police officer or designated person authority to issue citations.

Section 6-12 sets a 72-hour redemption window: an impounded dog not reclaimed within 72 hours may be destroyed humanely or placed with a new owner, with that clock starting only after a postcard notice is mailed to a currently licensed dog's owner. Puppies under four months get a separate restraint rule under Section 6-14, requiring them to be confined to the owner's premises or kept under physical restraint.