St Louis Park

Dangerous Dogs

An Animal Control Authority officer shall determine that a dog is a dangerous dog if the officer believes, based upon the officer's professional judgment that the dog has:

1. without provocation, inflicted substantial bodily harm on a human being on public or private property;
2. killed a domestic animal without provocation while off the owner's property; or
3. been determined to be a potentially dangerous dog, and after the owner has notice that the dog is potentially dangerous, the dog aggressively bites, attacks, or endangers the safety of humans or domestic animals.

An Animal Control Authority officer shall determine that a dog is a potentially dangerous dog if the officer believes, based upon the officer's professional judgment that a dog has:

1. when unprovoked, inflicted bites on a human or domestic animal on public or private property;
2. when unprovoked, chased or approached a person, including a person on a bicycle, upon the streets, sidewalks or any public or private property, other than the dog owner's property, in an apparent attitude of attack; or
3. a known propensity, tendency, or disposition to attack unprovoked, causing injury or otherwise threatening the safety of humans or domestic animals.

City Code chapter 4, Section 4-88 contains all of the regulations regarding dangerous dogs, Section 4-89 is the regulations regarding potentially dangerous dogs.

Leash Laws - Dogs

When not at the off-leash dog park, dogs are not allowed to run at large in St. Louis Park.  Dogs must be controlled by a leash no more than twenty (20) feet long, which is shortened to six (6) feet when another person or animal is within twenty (20) feet.

If you would like to run your dog off leash, visit one of our off-leash dog parks.

What to do if Your Pet is Missing?

Animal Bites

If your cat or dog bites someone, identify yourself and tell the victim whether your pet's rabies vaccination is current. The city requires that your pet be quarantined - usually inside your home for 10 days. After 10 days, a city staff member will contact you to confirm if your pet is still in good health.

Rather than quarantining the animal, the pet owner may choose to release the animal to a veterinarian who will euthanize it. The veterinarian will arrange to have the University of Minnesota examine the animal for evidence of rabies. The owner is responsible for all costs.

Be sure to report any animal bite: call the St. Louis Park public safety dispatcher at (952) 924-2618.

Stray or Unwelcome Animal Intruder

To report a stray animal, call the St. Louis Park public safety dispatcher at (952) 924-2618. Please be ready with the animal's description and general location.

Occasionally, a squirrel, raccoon, skunk, bat or bird finds its way into a home. If you can't get the animal to leave through an open door or window, call a company that specializes in animal removal (see Yellow Pages under "Pest Control").

If you feel immediately threatened by the animal or are unsure what to do, call the public safety dispatcher at (952) 924-2618 or the animal control officer at (952) 924-2133 for advice.

Animal cruelty

Minnesota law allows police officers to take an animal to a shelter if the animal

• is not protected from heat, cold or inclement weather
• has not been given food or water.

If an animal is left in a hot car and its health or safety is endangered, officers are empowered to use reasonable force to enter the vehicle and remove the animal.

Engaging in dog fighting or pitting animals against one another is illegal.

Wild Animals as Pets

City ordinance prohibits residents from keeping any animal prohibited by state or federal law as well as non-domesticated animals such as skunks, bobcats, wolves, venomous snakes, etc. For more information, call the animal control officer (952) 924-2133.

Coyotes Are Among Us

Extensive studies show that coexistence is the only effective relationship for humans and urban coyotes and one of the best ways to coexist with coyotes is to prevent conflicts with them. Do not let them get accustomed to you or your neighborhood; habituation of humans and our surroundings creates coyote conflicts. The city also includes coyote...

Continue Reading