Ohio Dangerous Dog Law

What happens right after a bite

A doctor, nurse or veterinarian who learns of a dog bite must report it to the local health commissioner within 24 hours, and the bitten person may report it as well¹³. The health commissioner then orders the dog quarantined for at least ten days, usually at the owner's home, sometimes at a pound or kennel, always at the owner's expense¹⁶. During that period the dog may not leave the county, be given away or be put down, unless it has to be killed to stop an attack or because it is sick or badly injured; in that case the body must be held for rabies testing¹⁵. Ohio's local health departments investigate about 20,000 animal bite and exposure incidents a year²⁷. See dog bite quarantine for how this compares with other states.

The bite also triggers an investigation. Any official authorized to enforce the dog laws must investigate a complaint, and if no charge is filed must post a notice on the door of the dog's home within 24 hours naming the law at issue²³.

The three classes created by Avery's Law

Avery's Law (H.B. 247), named for a Reynoldsburg girl badly hurt in a 2024 attack, took effect on March 20, 2026 and replaced Ohio's dangerous-dog chapter²³. The Legislative Service Commission described the old system as "one free bite": a dog that killed or maimed someone could not be euthanized unless it had already been designated vicious and was running at large²³. The classes now turn on what the dog did, always without provocation¹⁷:

• Nuisance dog act: off its owner's premises, chasing or menacing a person, attempting to bite, or chasing or harming another dog or livestock.
• Dangerous dog act: injuring a person by physical contact (short of serious injury), seriously injuring someone without contact, or killing another dog.
• Vicious dog act: killing a person, seriously injuring a person by physical contact, or committing a dangerous dog act after a dangerous designation.

Playful or age-appropriate behavior is not an injury, and on-duty police dogs are excluded¹⁷. "Without provocation" means the dog was not teased, tormented or abused and was not defending a person¹⁷.

How a dog is designated

If the dog warden has probable cause, which can rest on written witness statements, and judges that the dog can safely stay home, the warden may designate it and notify the owner by certified mail or in person¹⁸. The owner then has ten calendar days to file a written request for a hearing in the court for the place where the incident happened¹⁸. If the dog killed or seriously injured someone, or is not safe at home, the warden holds it and petitions the court instead; the owner pays the boarding costs unless the court declines to designate the dog¹⁸. The court must hold the hearing within ten days, and the warden must prove the act by clear and convincing evidence¹⁸. Either side can appeal¹⁸. Until the case ends, a dog left at home must be confined as a dangerous dog would be¹⁸.

When a court orders euthanasia

After a hearing, a court may order a dangerous or vicious dog humanely destroyed at the owner's expense. It must do so if the dog killed a person or caused a serious injury involving substantial risk of death, permanent incapacity, serious permanent disfigurement or acute pain causing substantial suffering¹⁸. A nuisance dog can be destroyed only if it injured another dog or a person while trying to bite¹⁸. Criminal courts have the same powers¹⁷. See dog bite euthanasia laws.

Criminal penalties for owners

The owner commits an offense by negligently failing to prevent an unprovoked act, even a first one¹⁷:

### Dog with no prior designation - Nuisance act: minor misdemeanor. - Dangerous act: fourth-degree misdemeanor (up to 30 days in jail). - Vicious act: third-degree misdemeanor (up to 60 days)¹⁷³⁰.

### Dog already designated dangerous or vicious - Dangerous act injuring a person: first-degree misdemeanor (up to 180 days). - Vicious act injuring or killing a person: third-degree felony, 9 to 36 months in prison¹⁷³⁰²³.

Letting a designated dog run loose is a separate offense, and for a vicious dog the court must order supervision and obedience training or may order the dog destroyed²⁰. Debarking a dog known to be dangerous or vicious is a fourth-degree felony with mandatory euthanasia¹⁹. A person convicted of a violent felony cannot own or live with a dangerous or vicious dog for three years²⁸. See dog bite criminal charges.

Breed rules

Ohio once classed every pit bull as a vicious dog, a rule the Supreme Court of Ohio upheld in 2007 along with Toledo's local ordinance²⁴. The 2012 rewrite dropped breed from the state definitions, and Avery's Law kept them breed-neutral²⁶¹⁷. Counties, townships and cities may still pass dog-control laws that do not conflict with state law, so a local breed rule is possible²⁵.

Selling or giving away a designated dog

Within ten days of a transfer, the former owner must give the new owner, the board of health and the dog warden a form disclosing the dog's bite history and designation²².

Rules for a declared dog in Ohio

Ohio rules in brief

Reporting. Since March 20, 2026, a health care provider or veterinarian who learns of a dog bite or attack injury must report it within 24 hours to the health commissioner of the district where it happened; the bitten person may report it too¹³. The Department of Health rule also lists the bitten person among those who report¹⁴. The owner of a designated dangerous or vicious dog must tell the dog warden immediately if the dog bites someone¹⁹.

Euthanasia. A court may order a dangerous or vicious dog destroyed after a designation hearing, and must do so if the dog killed a person or caused serious injury involving a substantial risk of death, permanent incapacity, serious permanent disfigurement or acute pain causing substantial suffering¹⁸. The same mandatory rule applies in a criminal case against the owner¹⁷. Either side may appeal the hearing result as in any other case in that court¹⁸.

Criminal penalties. An owner who negligently fails to stop an unprovoked vicious dog act (killing or seriously injuring a person) commits a third-degree misdemeanor on a first offense, even if the dog had no history; if the dog was already designated dangerous or vicious, it is a third-degree felony¹⁷. A third-degree felony of this kind carries 9 to 36 months in prison³⁰.

Breed rules. State law has had no breed category since 2012, and no statute bars cities from breed rules; the Supreme Court of Ohio upheld Toledo's pit bull ordinance in 2007²⁴²⁵²⁶.

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. Ohio Revised Code § 955.28, Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Checked 17 October 2026.
2. Beckett v. Warren, 124 Ohio St.3d 256, 2010-Ohio-4, Supreme Court of Ohio. Checked 17 October 2026.
3. Pulley v. Malek, 25 Ohio St.3d 95 (1986), CourtListener. Checked 17 October 2026.
4. L.H. v. Sun Secured Financing, L.L.C., Slip Opinion No. 2026-Ohio-2219, Supreme Court of Ohio. Checked 17 October 2026.
5. Purcell v. Stemen, 2023-Ohio-4086 (3d Dist.), Supreme Court of Ohio. Checked 17 October 2026.
6. Ohio Revised Code § 2305.10, Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Checked 17 October 2026.
7. Ohio Revised Code § 2305.16, Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Checked 17 October 2026.
8. Ohio Revised Code § 3109.01 (age of majority), Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Checked 17 October 2026.
9. Ohio Revised Code § 2744.04, Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Checked 17 October 2026.
10. Ohio Revised Code § 2315.33, Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Checked 17 October 2026.
11. Ohio Revised Code § 2315.18, Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Checked 17 October 2026.
12. Ohio Revised Code § 2315.21, Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Checked 17 October 2026.
13. Ohio Revised Code § 955.61, Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Checked 17 October 2026.
14. Ohio Administrative Code 3701-3-28, Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Checked 17 October 2026.
15. Ohio Revised Code § 955.261, Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Checked 17 October 2026.
16. Ohio Administrative Code 3701-3-29, Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Checked 17 October 2026.
17. Ohio Revised Code § 955.22, Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Checked 17 October 2026.
18. Ohio Revised Code § 955.23, Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Checked 17 October 2026.
19. Ohio Revised Code § 955.24, Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Checked 17 October 2026.
20. Ohio Revised Code § 955.21, Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Checked 17 October 2026.
21. Ohio Revised Code § 955.02, Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Checked 17 October 2026.
22. Ohio Revised Code § 955.11, Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Checked 17 October 2026.
23. Final Analysis, Am. Sub. H.B. 247 (136th General Assembly), Avery's Law, Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Checked 17 October 2026.
24. Toledo v. Tellings, 114 Ohio St.3d 278, 2007-Ohio-3724, Supreme Court of Ohio. Checked 17 October 2026.
25. Ohio Revised Code § 955.10, Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Checked 17 October 2026.
26. Ohio Revised Code § 955.11 (version effective May 22, 2012), Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Checked 17 October 2026.
27. Rabies and Animal Bites, Ohio Department of Health. Checked 17 October 2026.
28. Ohio Revised Code § 955.54, Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Checked 17 October 2026.
29. Hipshire v. Oakwood Village, 2024-Ohio-5948 (2d Dist.), Supreme Court of Ohio. Checked 17 October 2026.
30. Ohio Revised Code §§ 2929.24 and 2929.14 (jail and prison terms), Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Checked 17 October 2026.