Noblesville, IN Animal Ordinances: Dog Leash Laws (2026)

Section 90.12 sets Noblesville's core restraint rule: it is unlawful for any owner or custodian to allow an animal to run at large anywhere within the incorporated city, regardless of whether it wears a collar and tag, and any animal found running loose is impounded immediately by officers of the animal control unit or any Noblesville police officer, who may pursue the animal onto private property to make the capture. Division (B) holds owners to a duty of reasonable care to prevent the animal from injuring people, property, or other animals, and makes a minor's parent or guardian responsible for the minor's violations.

Division (C) spells out what counts as adequate restraint: the animal must be securely and humanely enclosed in a house, building, fence, pen, or other enclosure it cannot climb, dig, jump, or otherwise escape, with the enclosure locked whenever the animal is unattended; or securely tethered by a chain, cable, trolley, or other sufficient tether; or kept on a leash under a competent person's direct control while on public property, with an off-leash exception only if the animal is obedient to command and the handler stays present, including within designated dog parks.

Division (D) separately regulates tethering: it discourages chaining outright and, where used, bars tethering between 11:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m., requires shelter access, sets a minimum twelve-foot tether with swivels on both ends, and forbids choke collars or tethers attached directly to the neck. Violating § 90.12 is a Class A Infraction under § 90.99(A)(1), fined $100 to $500, with each 24-hour period of noncompliance a separate offense.