Louisiana Dangerous Dog Law

What happens right after the bite?

The Louisiana Sanitary Code treats every dog bite to a person as a possible rabies exposure. The dog must be confined for at least 10 days, or killed and its head sent to a state laboratory for testing²⁰. Confinement means a cage or another setup where the dog cannot touch any person or animal; tying the dog up does not count²⁰. No rabies vaccine should be given during the 10 days, so signs of the disease are not confused with vaccine side effects²⁰.

The state leaves the location to parish or city animal control. Department of Health guidance says home observation should be allowed only where animal control confirms the setup is secure, and not for dogs that were never vaccinated, are dangerously aggressive, or are hard to confine²¹. Animal control may choose euthanasia and testing instead, for example when the dog is too vicious to hold or the bite is to the victim's head or neck, after consulting the state public health veterinarian²². Rabies in dogs is rare in Louisiana: a dog in Acadiana confirmed in September 2026 was the first canine case since 2014²⁵. See dog bite quarantine.

When is a dog "dangerous" or "vicious"?

The Criminal Code uses two classes^13,14.

• Dangerous dog: a dog that, unprovoked, bites a person causing an injury; or twice in 36 months forces a person off the owner's property to defend against it; or twice in 36 months kills or injures a domestic animal off the owner's property¹³. One unprovoked injurious bite is enough, which is a lower bar than in many states.
• Vicious dog: a dog that, unprovoked and aggressively, seriously injures or kills a person after it was already found dangerous¹⁴. Owning a vicious dog is itself a crime¹⁴.

Police dogs and certified search-and-rescue dogs are excluded from both classes^13,14.

How does the hearing work?

Only officials can start it: the district attorney, the sheriff, an animal control officer or another designated representative files a petition in the district court, at no cost to the parish¹². The judge issues a rule ordering the owner to show cause why the dog should not be declared dangerous or vicious. The hearing must be set no later than five days after the rule issues, counting weekends and holidays, and takes priority over other cases¹².

The court may not declare a dog dangerous or vicious if the evidence shows the injured person was committing a crime on the owner's property, or was teasing, tormenting, abusing or assaulting the dog; if the dog was defending a person nearby from an unjustified attack; or, for harm to another animal, that the dog was working as a hunting, herding or predator-control dog¹².

Either side can appeal. The owner must perfect the appeal within five calendar days of the order, returnable to the court of appeal within 15 days¹². A dog seized before the hearing is held as contraband, and if it is found dangerous or vicious the owner pays the costs of keeping it¹⁵.

A dog can also be designated without a hearing if the owner agrees; the licensing authority then records the designation¹⁶.

What must the owner of a dangerous dog do?

The court orders the owner to follow the state's restraint rules¹². At home the dog must be indoors or in a secure enclosure that keeps young children out and the dog in; away from home it must be on a leash that prevents escape^11,13. Signs reading "Beware of Dog" or "Dangerous Dog" must be posted around the enclosure¹³. The dog must be licensed and vaccinated, and the owner must tell animal control in writing within two days if the dog dies, is sold or leaves the parish or city^13,16. State law sets no insurance or bond requirement¹³.

Breaking these rules carries a fine of up to $300; ignoring the court's confinement order is contempt, fined $100 to $500^12,13.

Can the dog be euthanized?

Yes, in three situations, each only after a court hearing:

• A dog found vicious must be euthanized^12,15.
• A dog found dangerous may be euthanized if it poses an immediate threat to public health and safety¹⁵.
• Since 2003, any dog that, unprovoked and aggressively, kills or injures a person can be seized by police or animal control and, after a hearing under the same procedure, ordered euthanized, even with no earlier finding¹⁷.

A court may also bar the owner of a vicious dog from owning any dog for up to three years¹². See euthanasia laws by state.

Criminal penalties for the owner

Louisiana writes dog attacks into its general homicide and injury crimes. If a dog kills a person and the owner was "reckless and criminally negligent in confining or restraining" it, the owner commits negligent homicide, punishable by up to 10 years, with or without hard labor, or a fine of up to $5,000, or both¹⁸. If the dog injures someone, the same standard supports negligent injuring, punishable by up to six months or a $500 fine¹⁹. A leash-law violation is presumptive evidence of negligence. Both crimes exclude police, search-and-rescue and service dogs, and a dog lawfully inside a home, business or vehicle that attacks an unlawful intruder^18,19. "Owner" includes anyone who has fed, sheltered or kept the dog for three or more consecutive days¹⁸. More at criminal charges.

Breed rules

State law defines dangerous dogs by behavior, not breed, and does not stop parishes or towns from passing breed bans; the Village of Fenton in Jefferson Davis Parish banned pit bulls in 2019^13,24. Check the local ordinance where the dog lives.

Rules for a declared dog in Louisiana

Louisiana rules in brief

Reporting. The state Sanitary Code requires that a dog that bites a person be confined or tested, and that any dog showing signs of illness during observation be reported immediately to the local health authority²⁰. Suspected rabies in a person or animal must be reported to the Department of Health by phone within 24 hours²³. No statewide rule found for this page requires every bite to be reported beyond these; parish and city animal control ordinances set their own reporting duties.

Euthanasia. On a petition by the district attorney, sheriff or animal control, a district court holds a hearing within five days. A dog found vicious (it seriously injured or killed a person after an earlier dangerous-dog finding) must be euthanized; a dangerous dog may be euthanized if it poses an immediate threat^12,15. Any dog that, unprovoked, kills or injures a person can be seized and, after the same hearing, ordered euthanized¹⁷. The owner has five calendar days to appeal¹².

Criminal penalties. If a dog kills a person and the owner was reckless and criminally negligent in confining or restraining it, the owner commits negligent homicide, punishable by up to 10 years and a $5,000 fine¹⁸. An injury carries negligent injuring, up to six months and $500¹⁹. Owning a vicious dog: up to six months and $500¹⁴.

Breed rules. No state law bars breed-specific local ordinances; the Village of Fenton banned pit bulls in 2019²⁴.

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. Louisiana Civil Code art. 2321 (damage caused by animals; livestock), Louisiana State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
2. Pepper v. Triplet, 2003-C-0619 (La. 1/21/04), 864 So.2d 181, CourtListener (Supreme Court of Louisiana opinion). Checked 17 October 2026.
3. Louisiana Civil Code art. 2323 (comparative fault), Louisiana State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
4. Résumé digest, Act 15 (HB 431), 2025 Regular Session, Louisiana State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
5. Louisiana Civil Code art. 3493.1 (delictual actions), Louisiana State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
6. Act No. 423 (HB 315), 2024 Regular Session, enrolled, Louisiana State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
7. Louisiana Civil Code art. 3468 (incompetents), Louisiana State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
8. Louisiana Civil Code art. 2315 (liability for acts causing damages), Louisiana State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
9. Louisiana Civil Code art. 2315.6 (damages caused by injury to another), Louisiana State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
10. George v. Paffen, 06-890 (La. App. 5 Cir. 5/15/07), 957 So.2d 861, CourtListener (Louisiana Fifth Circuit Court of Appeal opinion). Checked 17 October 2026.
11. La. R.S. 14:102.12 (definitions), Louisiana State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
12. La. R.S. 14:102.13 (hearing to determine if dog is dangerous or vicious), Louisiana State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
13. La. R.S. 14:102.14 (unlawful ownership of dangerous dog), Louisiana State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
14. La. R.S. 14:102.15 (unlawful ownership of a vicious dog), Louisiana State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
15. La. R.S. 14:102.16 (seizure and destruction or disposition of dangerous or vicious dogs), Louisiana State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
16. La. R.S. 14:102.17 (registration of dangerous dogs; fees), Louisiana State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
17. La. R.S. 14:102.18 (seizure and disposition of dogs which cause death or inflict bodily injury), Louisiana State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
18. La. R.S. 14:32 (negligent homicide), Louisiana State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
19. La. R.S. 14:39 (negligent injuring), Louisiana State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.
20. Louisiana Administrative Code tit. 51, pt. III, ch. 1 (Sanitary Code: control of rabies), as amended May 2019, Louisiana Department of Health. Checked 17 October 2026.
21. Appropriate Ten-Day Observation in Dogs, Cats or Ferrets That Have Bitten Human Beings in Louisiana (updated April 29, 2019), Louisiana Department of Health, Infectious Disease Epidemiology Section. Checked 17 October 2026.
22. Protocol for Animal Control and Law Enforcement Agencies addressing animal bites and potential rabies exposures (August 28, 2019), Louisiana Department of Health, Infectious Disease Epidemiology Section. Checked 17 October 2026.
23. Rabies (Infectious Disease Epidemiology manual), Louisiana Department of Health, Infectious Disease Epidemiology Section. Checked 17 October 2026.
24. Louisiana village bans pit bulls, pit bull mixes (September 26, 2019), KALB / KPLC. Checked 17 October 2026.
25. Louisiana reports its first rabies case in a dog since 2014 (September 11, 2026), Louisiana Illuminator. Checked 17 October 2026.
26. Louisiana Civil Code art. 2315.4 (additional damages; intoxicated defendant), Louisiana State Legislature. Checked 17 October 2026.