Passaic 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). Passaic County's animal-control footprint is limited to the Passaic County Park System (Garret Mountain Reservation, Goffle Brook Park, Rifle Camp Park, etc.) and assistance from the Passaic County SPCA on cruelty matters. Wayne Township Municipal Code Chapter 68 (Dogs, Cats and Other Animals), Article I (Dog Regulations) requires that no person owning, keeping, or harboring a dog shall permit it to go upon a private residence's lawn, yard, walk, or driveway without permission, or upon public streets or public/semipublic places, unless accompanied by a person and securely confined and controlled by an adequate leash not more than 6 feet long. Wayne defines 'at large' as a dog off the owner's premises and not securely fastened to a leash held by a person capable of controlling the dog. Wayne also requires a pooper-scooper for waste cleanup and prohibits keeping a dog over 6 months old without a current rabies vaccination by a NJ-licensed veterinarian. Wayne Animal Control: 973.694.9295. Paterson, Clifton, Passaic City, Hawthorne, and other Passaic municipalities each have substantively similar 6-foot-leash and at-large rules in their own codes. Animal control intake for several Passaic municipalities is contracted to local shelters. 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.