Walworth County, WI Noise Ordinances: Barking Dogs (2026)

Section 6-31 sits in Chapter 6, Article II, Division 1 of the Walworth County Code of Ordinances, the general dog provisions that apply to owners in unincorporated Walworth County towns. The ordinance targets any person who "knowingly" keeps or harbors a dog that "habitually barks, howls or yelps to the great discomfort of the peace and quiet of the neighborhood," or that disturbs neighbors "of ordinary sensibilities" in a similarly annoying manner. The code sets no decibel reading or time-of-day trigger; the standard is the impact on neighborhood peace, and a dog meeting it is declared a public nuisance outright.

Enforcement runs through the Sheriff's Office and the county's humane officer. Section 6-31(b)(2) authorizes "any County Deputy or humane officer" to impound a barking dog kept in violation of the section and to place the impounded animal "as directed by the Lakeland Animal Welfare Society," the county's contracted shelter provider. A violation carries a forfeiture of "not more than $1,000.00," with a $200.00 bond plus costs set for anyone cited.

The section traces to Ord. No. 140-121/91, adopted December 10, 1991, and sits alongside the county's broader dog code: Sec. 6-32 addresses dogs running at large or unlicensed, Sec. 6-33 caps damage claims by dogs to domestic animals at $1,000.00 per claim, and Division 2 (Sec. 6-51) requires a license for any dog over five months old. Because Walworth County's animal code governs only the unincorporated towns, residents of Lake Geneva, Delavan, Elkhorn, Whitewater, Burlington or any of the county's incorporated villages fall under their own municipal noise or animal ordinances instead of Sec. 6-31.