Oyster Bay, NY Noise Ordinances: Barking Dogs (2026)

B(4) singles out animal and bird noise inside the Noise Control Ordinance's list of specific prohibited acts, making it unlawful to own, possess or harbor "any animal or bird which, for a long continuous and frequent duration in excess of 30 minutes, howls, barks, meows, squawks or makes other sounds" that create a noise disruption across a residential real property boundary or within a designated noise-sensitive zone. Unlike the ordinance's device-specific clauses, this one carries no nighttime clock: the 30-minute continuous-duration threshold applies at any hour, so a dog barking through the afternoon can trigger a complaint just as readily as one barking overnight.

"Noise disruption" is defined at Section 156-2 as sound that interferes with the reasonable and normal activities of a reasonable person of normal sensitivities occupying an adjacent area, meaning an inspector weighs the practical impact on the next-door neighbor rather than measuring decibels. The Department of Public Works and the Department of Planning and Development share investigative duties under Section 156-3, including inspecting private property for compliance when permission is granted by the owner, or seeking a search warrant when it is refused, and pursuing complaints through a notice of violation or summons.

B(4) is keyed to "residential real property boundary," the rule reaches neighbor-to-neighbor complaints in residential zones specifically, distinct from the commercial and industrial area definitions used elsewhere in the chapter.