First walks in Louisville.
In Louisville, a dog off your property stays on a lead or leash under the control of someone who can handle it - with off-leash play reserved for the seven dog runs on the Louisville Dog Run Association list. The metro government’s own rules and how we suggest starting a new dog’s first week.
The rules, in short
From the Louisville Metro Code of Ordinances and the metro government’s own pages.
- 1Off your property: a lead or leash, with a capable handler
- 2Off-leash play: the seven dog runs on the LDRA list
- 3License and rabies tags on the collar from four months
- 4Microchip required from three months
- 5Pick up immediately - and carry the means to do it
- 6No length cap for most dogs - four feet for dangerous dogs
Hours, exceptions & the fine print
Louisville Metro requires every dog to be "kept under restraint at all times" (91.002). The code defines restraint off your property as "restrained by a lead or leash and under the control of a responsible person physically able to control the dog" - the only exception written in is an enclosed off-leash area designated by the Metro Department of Parks, used under that department’s rules (91.001). The code sets no leash-length cap for most dogs; the four-foot cap applies only to dogs officially declared dangerous or potentially dangerous. Civil citations under the chapter run $150 to $1,000, multiplied by the number of previous offenses (91.999(B)).
The first week
The same calm start we suggest everywhere - on Louisville’s streets.
- 1Leash, quiet streets, short and sniffy - calm hours, near home, ending before your dog is wound up. An off-leash area is not day-one material for a brand-new dog.
- 2Sniffing is the point - let your dog pause and sniff instead of focusing on distance. More on the sniff walk.
- 3Settle first, explore later - more on the first days: a routine for a newly adopted dog and a calm start to every walk.
The dog runs, for later
Once your dog has settled. The Louisville Dog Run Association lists seven dog runs across the metro:
- 1Cochran Hill Dog Run - Cherokee Park, 745 Cochran Hill Rd - about three acres, separate all-dog and small-dog sides
- 2Vettiner Dog Run - Charlie Vettiner Park, 5550 Charlie Vettiner Park Rd - behind the tennis courts, separate small-dog side
- 3Champions Dog Run - Louisville Champions Park, 2050 River Rd - 3.6 acres, separate all-dog and small-dog sides
- 4Old Louisville Dog Run - Toonerville Trolley Park, Oak St at Brook St - two fenced areas
- 5Waverly Dog Run - Waverly Park, 4800 Waverly Park Rd - about 1.5 wooded acres, one area for all dogs
- 6Sawyer Dog Park - E.P. "Tom" Sawyer State Park, 3000 Freys Hill Rd - about six acres, one small-dog and two all-dog areas
- 7The Barklands of Floyds Fork - Beckley Creek Park, 1411 Beckley Creek Pkwy - about four acres, separate small-dog and all-dog sides
The runs are permit facilities: the Louisville Dog Run Association requires its own Dog Park Permit for every user - apply with the association before your first visit, keep current rabies vaccination and the permit tag on the collar, and follow its rules. Visiting dogs can arrange temporary access to Cochran Hill through the association. Inside a run the leash comes off under LDRA rules; everywhere else the restraint rule applies.
Pins mark the park or its listed access point, not the exact off-leash boundary.
Good to know
Worth knowing
License and rabies vaccination tags are required for every dog four months and older, "firmly attached to a harness or collar" (91.021). Fees: $10 a year for an altered dog (or $27 for three years matched to a triennial rabies vaccine), $120 for an unaltered dog, and a $25 one-time lifetime license for a spayed or neutered, microchipped dog that stays valid while the rabies vaccine is current - seniors 65 and older pay half the lifetime fee, assistance dogs are licensed free, and a license more than 30 days overdue adds a $15 late fee (Appendix A). Every dog three months and older must also be microchipped - skipping it can bring a fine of up to $500 per occurrence (91.020). On any public property, street or sidewalk you must carry something to pick up with and remove your dog’s feces immediately (91.010); that section exempts blind or disabled handlers accompanied by an assistance dog.
Sources
Sources: Louisville Metro Code of Ordinances Chapter 91: 91.001 (restraint definition) and 91.002 (restraint required), 91.010 (waste), 91.020 (microchip), 91.021 (licenses and tags), 91.999 (penalties): amlegal Louisville Metro ch. 91, Appendix A fee schedule, and the metro’s Chapter 91 PDF. Metro Parks pages: Cherokee Park, Charlie Vettiner Park, Louisville Champions Park; dog-run partner Louisville Dog Run Association; official Parks guide dog-run index. All verified November 2, 2026.
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