Portland, OR Noise Ordinances: Barking Dogs (2026)
Barking dog rules in Portland, OR, 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
- Continuous noise threshold
- 10 minutes minimum
- Intermittent noise threshold
- 30 minutes total
- Enforcing agency
- Multnomah County Animal Control
- Permitted facilities
- Separate rule, § 18.12.020 A.2
Summary
Portland bans animal noise that unreasonably disturbs neighbors: barking, whining, or howling must run continuously for 10 minutes or intermittently for 30 minutes to count as a violation.
It is a violation for any animal to unreasonably cause annoyance, alarm, noise disturbance at any time of the day or night by repetitive barking, whining, screeching, howling, braying or other like sounds that may be heard beyond the boundary of the owner's property or keeper's property under conditions wherein the animal sounds are shown to have occurred either as an episode of continuous noise lasting for a minimum period of ten minutes or repeated episodes of intermittent noise lasting for a minimum period of thirty minutes.
Full Breakdown
Portland City Code § 18.12.020 A.1 makes it a violation for any animal to cause a noise disturbance at any time of day or night through repetitive barking, whining, screeching, howling, or braying that carries beyond the owner's or keeper's property line. The noise must occur as either a continuous episode lasting at least 10 minutes or repeated intermittent episodes totaling at least 30 minutes. Multnomah County Animal Control enforces this subsection. Animals in a permitted specified animal facility or lawful kennel fall under a parallel rule in § 18.12.020 A.2, enforced instead by Portland Permitting & Development.
Violations & Fines
Enforced by Multnomah County Animal Control as a noise disturbance violation of Title 18; complaints are handled as code violations, not a criminal matter, and repeat or unresolved cases can escalate to citation.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does a dog have to bark before it's a violation in Portland?
Who enforces Portland's barking dog rule?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Portland
Compare Portland to another location·View the Oregon noise ordinances overview
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