Volusia County, FL Animal Ordinances: Dog Leash Laws (2026)
Key Facts
- Restraint required
- At all times off owner's property
- Acceptable restraint methods
- Leash, vehicle, crate/pen, truck bed cage
- Park rule
- Leashed except in designated leash-free areas
- Voice-command control
- Must be demonstrated on request
- Maximum civil penalty
- $1,000.00 per violation
- Enforcing agency
- Animal Services Division
Summary
Volusia County requires every animal off its owner's property to stay under restraint at all times, and dogs visiting any public park other than a designated leash-free area must be leashed, securely confined in a parked or moving vehicle, or caged in a truck bed.
(a)Required. It shall be the duty of the owner of an animal or anyone having an animal in his or her possession to keep the animal under restraint and control at all times while the animal is off the property limits of its owner, possessor, or custodian. For the purpose of this Section, an animal is deemed under control when it is:(1)Securely confined within a vehicle, parked or in motion; or(2)Caged in the bed of a pickup truck; or(3)Securely and humanely confined within a house, building, fence, crate, pen, or other enclosure with the property owner's consent; or(4)Leashed or otherwise controlled by a responsible person or is obedient to the commands of a person present with the animal... (b)Public parks (excluding the Atlantic Ocean beach). It shall be the duty of the owner of an animal or anyone having an animal in his or her possession to keep the animal leashed, under secure restraint within a vehicle parked or in motion, or caged in the bed of a pickup truck, at all times when visiting any public park, except in an area of a public park designated as a "leash free dog park".
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 108 Update 1).
Full Breakdown
Section 14-48 requires the owner or anyone in possession of an animal to keep it under restraint and control at all times while off the owner's property. The code lists four ways an animal is considered under control: securely confined within a vehicle, whether parked or in motion; caged in the bed of a pickup truck; securely and humanely confined within a house, building, fence, crate, pen or other enclosure with the property owner's consent; or leashed, or otherwise obedient to the commands of a responsible person present with the animal, with any claimed voice-command control subject to being demonstrated on request.
Subsection (b) adds a park-specific rule: at any public park other than the Atlantic Ocean beach, the animal must be leashed, securely restrained in a vehicle, or caged in a truck bed at all times, except within an area of the park specifically designated a leash-free dog park. This restraint duty sits alongside the separate on-property restraint requirement in section 14-47 and the nuisance-animal standard in section 14-49, which independently makes persistent barking, property damage, or roaming onto school grounds a violation. Section 14-48 is enforced by the Animal Services Division and applies only in the unincorporated county; incorporated cities within Volusia, including Deltona and Daytona Beach, enforce their own leash ordinances.
Violations & Fines
Any person who fails to keep an animal under restraint while off the owner's property, or who fails to leash a dog at a public park outside a designated leash-free area, violates section 14-48 and is subject to the civil penalties in section 14-32: up to $1,000.00 per violation plus a state-mandated surcharge, with citations issued by an animal control officer based on probable cause.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do dogs need to be leashed at Volusia County parks?
Can a dog be off-leash if it obeys voice commands?
Is it enough to keep a dog in a fenced yard while off the owner's property?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Volusia County
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