Charleston, WV Noise Ordinances: Barking Dogs (2026)
Barking dog rules in Charleston, WV, also called nuisance dog, dog noise, or excessive barking ordinances, define when a barking dog becomes a code violation and how complaints are handled.
Key Facts
- Code section
- Sec. 10-6, Charleston Code of Ordinances
- Maximum fine
- $500 per violation (Sec. 10-20)
- Applies to
- dogs, cats, other animals in residential districts
- Continuing violation
- each day is a separate offense
Summary
Charleston law makes it illegal to keep a dog or cat in a residential district whose frequent or continued barking disturbs the comfort or repose of nearby residents, enforceable under the city's general animal-code penalty.
It shall be unlawful to own any animal, including a dog or cat, in a residentially-zoned district, which by frequent or long continued noise shall disturb the comfort or repose of any person within the vicinity of such animal, or shall by the nature of their maintenance or by the numbers of the same shall create an offensive odor so as to be objectionable to surrounding residences. All dogs and cats in heat shall be confined in a secure and sufficiently enclosed area throughout the period of estrus. In any event, dogs in heat shall be so confined for no less than 25 days during the period of estrus. No person shall own on their premises more than two dogs, ten weeks in age or older, unless such premises is licensed as a commercial kennel or the owner has a permit from the city allowing more than two dogs, as provided in section 10-121. The provisions of this section are to be interpreted consistently with any city noise ordinance.
(Ord. No. 7266, 6-18-2007)
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 56).
Full Breakdown
Section 10-6 of the Charleston Code makes it unlawful to own a dog, cat, or other animal in a residentially-zoned district if frequent or long-continued noise disturbs the comfort or repose of anyone nearby, or if the animal's odor becomes objectionable to surrounding residences. The section is enforced alongside the city's general noise ordinance. No specific fine is listed for this section, so the chapter's general animal-control penalty in Section 10-20 applies: up to $500 per violation, with each continuing day treated as a separate offense, plus possible injunctive relief for nuisance abatement.
Violations & Fines
Violating the animal-nuisance ordinance carries a fine of up to $500 under the general animal-code penalty (Sec. 10-20); each day the noise nuisance continues counts as a separate offense, with injunctive relief also available to abate it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is a barking dog illegal in Charleston, WV?
What's the penalty for a noisy dog in Charleston?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Charleston
Compare Charleston to another location·View the West Virginia noise ordinances overview
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