Pawtucket, RI Animal Ordinances: Dog Leash Laws (2026)

Article IV, Dogs and Other Animals, approved May 10, 1984, defines AT LARGE in § 116-9 as any dog off its owner's property and not under restraint, and UNDER RESTRAINT as a dog leashed or confined in or on a vehicle parked within the owner's property limits. Section 116-11 then makes the owner responsible for keeping the dog under restraint at all times and properly collared, off the premises only when restrained and collared as defined. Section 116-12 sends a dog running at large, uncollared, or declared a public nuisance to the City Dog Pound for a minimum 10-day hold, though a dog cannot be humanely destroyed in fewer than five days even if the shelter's runs are full.

Unclaimed dogs become eligible for adoption through Volunteer Services for Animals after five days and may be disposed of after 10. A 2016 amendment, § 116-12F, escalates consequences for repeat offenders cited for a dog at large: a second citation requires the owner to tether the dog whenever it is outside unattended, and a third requires a fence at least four feet high enclosing the entire property, with the dog impoundable until the fence goes up and the owner responsible for boarding costs in the meantime.