Grand Rapids, MI Noise Ordinances: Barking Dogs (2026)
Barking dog rules in Grand Rapids, MI, 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
- Section
- Sec. 9.63(12)
- Covered sounds
- loud or frequent or habitual barking, yelping or howling
- Per se rule
- Sec. 9.63.1: deemed unreasonable and constitutes a prohibited noise
- Enforcement
- Municipal civil infraction
- Latest amendment cited
- Ord. No. 2026-01, § 1, 1-13-26
Summary
Grand Rapids City Code § 9.63(12) makes it a prohibited noise to own any dog whose loud, frequent, or habitual barking, yelping, or howling annoys people in the neighborhood. Under Sec. 9.63.1 the sound is deemed unreasonable without any decibel reading.
Own any dog which by loud or frequent or habitual barking, yelping or howling, shall cause annoyance to the people in the neighborhood. (Ord. No. 2019-71, § 2, 11-19-19; Ord. No. 2023-48, § 1, 10-10-23; Ord. No. 2026-01, § 1, 1-13-26)
Sec. 9.63.1. - Per Se Violations. Unless otherwise exempted by this Article, making, causing to be made, or allowing to be made any of the sounds identified in Section 9.63 is deemed unreasonable and constitutes a prohibited noise.
(Ord. No. 2019-71, § 2, 11-19-19)
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 70).
Full Breakdown
Section 9.63 of the Noise Control Ordinance (Chapter 151, Article 5, Title IX) is Grand Rapids' list of prohibited noises, and item (12) is the dog entry.
Who is responsible. The text is written around ownership: the violation is to "own any dog" that makes the noise. Responsibility attaches to the owner, not to whoever happens to be watching the dog.
What noise counts. Three sounds are named: barking, yelping, and howling. The ordinance joins its descriptors with "or", so the noise qualifies if it is loud, or frequent, or habitual. Barking that is habitual is covered even if no single episode is especially loud, and loud barking is covered without being constant.
Who must be affected. The noise has to cause annoyance to the people in the neighborhood. The measure is the effect on people nearby, not a sound level taken at a lot line.
Why no meter is needed. Sec. 9.63.1, titled Per Se Violations, says that making, causing to be made, or allowing to be made any of the sounds identified in Section 9.63 is deemed unreasonable and constitutes a prohibited noise. "Allowing to be made" fits an owner who lets the barking continue. The only stated limit is the opening phrase, "Unless otherwise exempted by this Article".
How current it is. The ordinance history printed after item (12) cites Ord. No. 2019-71, Ord. No. 2023-48, and Ord. No. 2026-01, the last dated 1-13-26.
Enforcement runs through the Environmental Services Director and Grand Rapids Police, and violations are treated as municipal civil infractions under the ordinance's penalty section.
Violations & Fines
Municipal civil infraction under Chapter 170; fines apply per occurrence, and continuing violations can be cited separately for each day the barking persists.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Grand Rapids have a barking dog ordinance?
Does the city need a decibel reading to cite a barking dog?
Does the dog have to bark constantly?
What's the penalty for a barking dog violation?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Grand Rapids
Compare Grand Rapids to another location·View the Michigan noise ordinances overview
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Barking Dogs in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Kent County handle barking dogs.