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

RMC 6.04.060 prohibits any owner or keeper from allowing a dog, licensed or not, to be or run at large in a public place without a leash, and requires owners to remove and lawfully dispose of any feces their dog deposits on public or private property; the only carve-out is a city-approved dog park where dogs may run off-leash. The code separately defines a compliant "leash" as rope, leather strap or chain no more than one-half inch in diameter and no longer than six feet, held in the hand of someone actually capable of controlling the dog (RMC 6.04.010(Q)); a dog off its leash under those terms, or not under the immediate control of a responsible person, meets the code's definition of a "stray dog" (RMC 6.04.010(J)).

A related section, RMC 6.04.075, separately requires anyone walking a dog on public property to carry visible, readily usable materials to pick up and dispose of feces. Enforcement runs through the police-chief-headed director of animal control field services and humane services officers, who may issue citations under Penal Code Section 836.5.