Southaven, MS Noise Ordinances: Barking Dogs (2026)

Southaven does not write its barking rule around dogs alone. Section 10-122(12) of the Noise Control chapter (Title X, Chapter 2) lists as a specific unlawful noise the keeping of any animal, bird or fowl which, by causing frequent or long continued noise, disturbs the comfort or repose of persons in the vicinity. The trigger is the noise pattern: it must be frequent or long continued, and it must disturb the comfort or repose of people nearby. The subsection prints no number of minutes, no decibel level and no quiet hours, so a single bark does not fit the wording while a repeated pattern that keeps neighbors from resting does.

Section 10-122 opens by declaring its listed acts loud, disturbing and unnecessary noises in violation of the chapter, and it says the list is not exclusive. Section 10-121(a) adds a general ban on any loud, unnecessary or unusual noise that disturbs the peace and quiet of any location within the incorporated limits of the City of Southaven or annoys a reasonable person of normal sensitiveness. For deciding whether a violation exists, § 10-121(b) points to the proximity of the noise to residential sleeping facilities, the nature and zoning of the area, the density of the area, the time of day or night, the duration of the noise, whether it is continuous, recurrent or intermittent, and whether the source is commercial or noncommercial. Night barking near bedrooms therefore weighs heavily.

The Animal Control title uses parallel language. Its definition of a public nuisance animal includes one that barks, whines, screams or howls in an excessive, continuous or untimely fashion. Section 10-61 declares excessive, unnecessary or offensive noise within the city a nuisance and says every resident is entitled to an environment free from it. The chief of police or a designee is responsible for enforcing the chapter (§ 10-141). A resident who wants a complaint handled can contact the Southaven Police Department, which holds that enforcement duty.