Denver’s parks abound with bounding labradors, its sidewalks patrolled by untethered shepherds, its public spaces filled with un-leashed dogs.
It might make you wonder, like one Denverite reader: Is all this legal? What exactly are the rules?
It’s pretty simple: Most of the time, you have to leash your pup. If you don’t, you could get an $80 civil penalty per violation.
In your home, yard, or a city-approved off-leash dog park, Fido can run free.
Otherwise, a leash is necessary. This includes in public parks, on the sidewalk, outside a dog park, or in your neighbor’s yard. That’s true for other animals too, including lizards, rabbits and cats.
Fines are actually steeper in the city’s public parks. Off-leash offenders may have to pay $100 for the first offense, $250 for the second and $500 for the third.
Denverites still seem to think it’s worth it.
"I work with folks experiencing homelessness. I work with folks experiencing drug use and abuse problems. Urban camping issues. You name it, I get it down here," a park ranger told Denverite back in 2018. "But still, the No. 1 complaint I get, every day, is dogs off leash."
This year, the city has handed out 686 tickets for off-leash dogs through October. Behind parking violations, it’s the second most common citation park goers receive.
"If they're not bothering anybody, what's the big deal?" said the owner of one off-leash dog in our earlier story.
“I wouldn’t know an argument against it. It’s for the dogs. They get exercise. They’re not bothering anybody,” another rule breaker told us.
But off-leash dogs can be frightening or dangerous to people, making it difficult for kids and adults with fears of dogs to use parks. They can also pick fights with on-leash dogs.
By the way: Tethers that tie an animal to an object are not permitted, except when grooming cats or dogs or when cleaning their enclosures.
So, yeah, if you tie your dog to a post and walk into a restaurant, you are violating state law.
Even when you are allowed to tether them, you have to make sure the tethered animal won’t get tangled up with other pet animals and objects.
If they’re tethered on a raised surface, they must have direct human supervision. And the tether has to be attached to a collar that doesn’t self-tighten.
If you’re still tempted to walk your dog off-leash and don’t want to go to a traditional dog park, you can always take your pooch to the Westminster Hills Open Space Off-Leash Area, and enjoy hundreds of acres of off-leash dog space — for as long as it lasts.
So, get those dogs some exercise. But be careful not to commit a paw law faux pas, you scofflaws.
