Hawaii Dangerous Dog Law

What happens right after a bite

Hawaii is rabies-free, so there is no routine 10-day quarantine after a bite²³. The health department's rule is narrower. If a person is bitten in circumstances where rabies "cannot be excluded", the director may order the animal seized, held for observation and tested²¹. That rule took effect in March 2026, when chapter 11-156.1 replaced the old communicable disease rules without changing the rabies section²². In practice it concerns animals with a link to travel or import, not the family dog that bit a neighbor.

The investigation is usually local. On Oahu, the Honolulu Police Department leads dangerous-dog complaints under chapter 12 of the Revised Ordinances of Honolulu. The Hawaiian Humane Society also investigates and enforces, and officers may cite an owner after a bite²⁴. State law separately requires the owner of any dog that bit a person to take reasonable steps to prevent another bite¹⁴.

How a dog is declared dangerous

Act 224 of 2024 created the state's first dangerous-dog law, in a new part of the criminal code¹⁶. A "dangerous dog" is one that, without provocation, causes a "bite injury" to a person or another animal. That means contact between its teeth and skin that leaves visible trauma, such as a puncture or a laceration¹⁵. Breed "shall not be considered"¹⁵.

Provocation is defined broadly. It includes a dog that was defending its household or itself, its kennel or its puppies, or responding to pain. It also includes a person bitten while committing a crime on the owner's property, or while disturbing the dog's sleep or meal on that property. The definition even covers someone who teased or abused the dog "at any time in the past"¹⁵.

An officer may make the declaration on probable cause. It must rest on one of three things: a written complaint from someone willing to testify, the officer's own observation, or other substantial evidence admissible in court. The declaration is in writing and served on the owner by certified mail or in person¹⁶.

Challenging the declaration

The owner can start a contested case with the officer's department or agency within 30 days of service¹⁶. Missing that window leaves the declaration in place.

What the owner must then do

The obligations in the table above apply from the declaration onward¹⁷. Indoors the dog must be under the control of someone 18 or older. Outdoors on the owner's land it must be in a locked escape-proof kennel when unattended. When someone is with it, it must be on a leash of four feet or less inside a fenced or walled area. Off the property it must also wear a basket muzzle¹⁷. Keeping the dog in breach of these rules is itself an offense, and the dog can be seized if the owner cannot secure it at once¹⁷.

Can the label be lifted?

After three years without violations, the owner can apply to the animal control authority to rescind the declaration. The application must include proof that the dog completed a behavior program run by a nationally certified trainer or behaviorist¹⁶.

Criminal penalties

An owner commits negligent failure to control a dangerous dog if a bite injury results from breaking the owner rules, or if the owner negligently fails to prevent an unprovoked bite that injures a person or seriously injures another animal¹⁸. That is a misdemeanor. The sentence is a fine of $1,000 to $2,000, up to six months in jail or a year of probation, restitution for medical costs (including counseling) and financial losses, and boarding costs. The owner must also carry the $50,000 insurance or bond¹⁸.

If the dog causes substantial or serious bodily injury to, or the death of, someone other than the owner, the offense is a class C felony. The sentence is 1–5 years in prison, a fine of $1,000 to $10,000, and euthanasia of the dog¹⁸. No sentence under either tier can be suspended¹⁸. A 2025 bill to split the felony into class B and class A tiers was carried over to 2026 with no further action²⁵.

When a dog can be put down

Euthanasia is mandatory on a felony conviction¹⁸. An impounded dangerous dog can also be euthanized if it is too dangerous for staff to care for, or if a veterinarian finds it is in extreme pain or past recovery¹⁹. Impoundment requires probable cause and, for entry, a warrant or other legal authority. An owner who cannot be found within five days, or who stops paying the care costs, loses ownership¹⁹. Outside the criminal process, anyone bitten can ask a district court to order the owner to remove the dog from the area or destroy it. The court weighs the dog's propensities and the owner's ability to confine it¹⁴.

Exceptions and civil claims

Police dogs used in law enforcement work are exempt from the dangerous-dog law²⁰. Nothing in it bars a civil suit for damages¹⁶. Counties keep their own ordinances on dogs that bite¹⁴. See Hawaii dog bite law for the civil side, and dangerous dog laws by state to compare.

Rules for a declared dog in Hawaii

Hawaii rules in brief

Reporting. Hawaii's communicable disease rules list rabies as a reportable disease but do not list animal bites²¹. Bite investigation is local. On Oahu the Honolulu Police Department leads dangerous-dog complaints under chapter 12 of the Revised Ordinances of Honolulu, and the Hawaiian Humane Society also investigates and enforces²⁴. A dangerous-dog declaration can start from the written complaint of a person willing to testify¹⁶.

Euthanasia. A felony conviction under HRS § 711-1144 (a bite causing substantial or serious bodily injury or death) carries mandatory euthanasia of the dog¹⁸. Animal control may also euthanize an impounded dangerous dog that is too dangerous for staff to care for, or that a veterinarian finds is suffering past recovery¹⁹. Separately, anyone bitten can ask a district court under HRS § 142-75 to order the owner to remove or destroy the dog¹⁴. An owner can contest a dangerous-dog declaration within 30 days of service¹⁶.

Criminal penalties. Negligent failure to control a dangerous dog is a misdemeanor when a bite injury results from breaking the owner rules or the dog injures a person. The penalty is a $1,000–$2,000 fine, up to six months in jail or a year of probation, and restitution. If the dog causes substantial or serious bodily injury or death, the offense is a class C felony with 1–5 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000. Neither sentence can be suspended¹⁸.

Breed rules. State law says a dog's breed "shall not be considered" in declaring it dangerous, but no statute expressly bars counties from adopting breed-specific ordinances^14,15.

Compare states: dangerous dog laws by state, bite quarantine rules, euthanasia after a bite. If your dog bit someone, start with what happens next.

Sources

1. Hawaii Revised Statutes § 663-9 (Liability of owner or harborer of animal), Hawaii State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
2. Hawaii Revised Statutes § 663-9.1 (Exceptions to liability), Hawaii State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
3. Hubbell v. Iseke, 6 Haw. App. 485, 727 P.2d 1131 (1986), CourtListener (Free Law Project). Checked 17 October 2026.
4. Franks v. Holloway, 153 Haw. 419, 540 P.3d 960 (App. 2023), CourtListener (Free Law Project). Checked 17 October 2026.
5. Hawaii Revised Statutes § 663-31 (Comparative negligence), Hawaii State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
6. Hawaii Revised Statutes § 657-7 (Damage to persons or property), Hawaii State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
7. Hawaii Revised Statutes § 657-13 (Infancy, insanity, imprisonment) and case notes, Hawaii State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
8. Hawaii Revised Statutes § 46-72 (Liability for injuries or damages; notice), Hawaii State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
9. Hawaii Revised Statutes § 662-4 (State Tort Liability Act: statute of limitations) and case notes, Hawaii State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
10. Hawaii Revised Statutes § 663-8.7 (Limitation on pain and suffering), Hawaii State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
11. Hawaii Revised Statutes § 663-8.5 (Noneconomic damages; defined), Hawaii State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
12. Hawaii Revised Statutes § 663-10.9 (Joint and several liability; exceptions), Hawaii State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
13. Masaki v. General Motors Corp., 71 Haw. 1, 780 P.2d 566 (1989), CourtListener (Free Law Project). Checked 17 October 2026.
14. Hawaii Revised Statutes § 142-75 (Dogs that bite humans; remedies), Hawaii State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
15. Hawaii Revised Statutes § 711-1140 (Dangerous dogs: definitions), Hawaii State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
16. Act 224, Session Laws of Hawaii 2024 (H.B. 2058), Relating to Dangerous Dogs (HRS §§ 711-1141, 711-1143, 711-1146, 711-1148), Hawaii State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
17. Hawaii Revised Statutes § 711-1142 (Legal requirements of owner), Hawaii State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
18. Hawaii Revised Statutes § 711-1144 (Negligent failure to control a dangerous dog; penalties), Hawaii State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
19. Hawaii Revised Statutes § 711-1145 (Impoundment of a dangerous dog), Hawaii State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
20. Hawaii Revised Statutes § 711-1147 (Exemption), Hawaii State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
21. Hawaii Administrative Rules chapter 11-156.1, Communicable Diseases (incl. § 11-156.1-42 Rabies and Exhibit A), Hawaii State Department of Health. Checked 17 October 2026.
22. Administrative rules filed, March 2026 (HAR 11-156.1 effective March 20, 2026), Office of the Lieutenant Governor of Hawaii. Checked 17 October 2026.
23. Rabies, Hawaii State Department of Health, Disease Outbreak Control Division. Checked 17 October 2026.
24. Policy: Animal Nuisance and Dangerous Dog Complaints, Honolulu Police Department. Checked 17 October 2026.
25. H.B. 634 (2025–2026), Relating to Dangerous Dogs: measure status, Hawaii State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.