Charlottesville, VA Noise Ordinances: Barking Dogs (2026)

Section 4-39(a) declares the harboring or keeping of a dog that disturbs the peace and quiet of a person or neighborhood through 'loud, frequent or habitual barking or howling' to be a nuisance and unlawful. Unlike most noise complaints handled administratively, this one runs through the courts: § 4-39(b) lets anyone annoyed by the barking file a complaint by warrant returnable to the Charlottesville General District Court, where it's heard like any other criminal warrant. If the judge finds the dog is a loud, frequent or habitual barker or howler that disturbs the peace of the complainant or neighborhood, the owner or custodian is guilty of a Class 4 misdemeanor.

The ordinance escalates for repeat offenders: on a third conviction within one year involving the same dog, the judge must, in addition to any fine, order the owner or custodian to permanently remove the dog from the city within two weeks. If the owner doesn't comply with that removal order, the animal warden seizes the dog and either has it humanely destroyed or placed for adoption outside the city. Because enforcement is complaint-driven through a criminal warrant rather than a citation from an inspector, a neighbor bothered by chronic barking must swear out the warrant themselves at the general district court rather than waiting on the police to act first.