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1. Do pets have to be leashed in Summit County?

The leash law in most of unincorporated Summit County is immediate control. This means that all pet animals are required to be under control and within 10 feet of a person competent to control and restrain the pet. Certain areas of the county require physical control of a pet animal which means the pet must be on a leash. Currently these areas include Arapahoe Basin Ski Area, Copper Mountain, Willow Creek Open Space, and the paved portions of the Summit County Recreational Pathway.

2. How do I report an Animal Control problem?

If you are having an Animal Control problem, contact Summit County Communications at 970-668-8600 and they will have an Animal Control Officer contact you. Our officers are on duty 7 days per week from 7:30 AM-5:30 PM. There is an officer available each night after business hours for emergency calls only. Routine calls will be handled during normal business hours.

3. What can I do about my neighbor’s barking dog?

Animal Control strongly encourages you to take a pro-active role in trying to resolve a nuisance dog problem. You can do so by following these steps:

Step 1:
Summit County Animal Control suggests that you contact the owner regarding the barking dog in an effort to resolve the problem at a neighborhood level first. This can be done in person or by sending a signed letter describing the specific problem. It is recognized that contacting your neighbor first is not always possible or desirable for you. If you are uncomfortable making the initial contact an Animal Control Officer (ACO) can intervene.

Step 2:
If the problem persists after the initial contact or if you aren’t comfortable contacting the owner, a warning can be issued. To issue a warning, the following information is needed from you.
A. Complete Address of the dog owner. If this is unknown, an ACO can try to assist you in gaining this information.
B. Description of dog(s) and circumstances. i.e. color, breed, size, etc. Can you see the dog(s)?
C. Specific date and time frames and/or intervals the dog(s) were barking. Example: “The dog barked from 8:00am to 10:00am” Note: “The dog barks all the time” is too vague of a statement and does not meet the elements of describing the nuisance.
D. A signed complaint. An ACO will produce a typed complaint including the above information and provide it to you to sign.
Step 3:
If the barking complaint is not resolved within 72 hours of the issuance of the first warning, then you will be instructed to sign a second complaint. A second warning will then be issued.
Step 4:
If the problem persists after another 72 hours, then you will be encouraged to sign another complaint for a citation to be issued. By doing so, you must be willing to testify in court, should that become necessary.

4. What constitutes a barking dog?

A dog that disturbs the peace of any other person by habitual or persistent barking, howling, yelping, or whining or any other unprovoked noise.

5. Who do I contact for wildlife issues?

Wildlife calls are handled by Colorado Parks and Wildlife. A District Wildlife Manager can be reached by contacting their Dispatch at (970)824-6501.