Dogs & animal control — Fort Smith, Northwest Territories

Do I need a dog licence? What are the leash rules?

Town of Fort Smith has 2 adopted bylaws on file, verified against the original documents on 2026-06-04.

Dog Control Bylaw No. 678 adopted bylaw

licence required	True	s. 3.1
licence fee	$25.00 un-neutered male or female; $10.00 spayed female; $10.00 neutered male	s. 3.5
leash rule	No owner shall permit dog to run at large; no dog allowed outside fenced area of residence unless leashed and under full physical control (leash not longer than six feet)	s. 5.1; s. 5.11; s. 2(n)
max animals	No more than two dogs per property or household (pups under 3 months excepted) unless written Council permission or kennel licence	s. 6.1
fine range	Run at large $50/$100; harbouring more than two dogs $50/$100/$150; summary conviction up to $2,000 (individual) / $10,000 (corporation)	s. 18.0 (OFFENCES AND RELATED FINES); s. 17.1

scout note

Provides for the control, licensing and prevention of cruelty to dogs in the Town of Fort Smith, under the Cities, Towns and Villages Act and the Dog Act. OCR-confirmed Dog Control Bylaw #678. PDF located at /media/833 (was previously unlocated).

Domestic Animal Control By-law No. 420 adopted bylaw

leash rule	No owner shall permit an animal (horses, cattle, sheep, swine, goats) to run at large in any part of the Town at any time; must keep on lawfully fenced premises	s. 3(4); s. 5(5)
fine range	fine not exceeding $500.00 or imprisonment up to six months (disease-control offences)	s. 4(5)

scout note

Provides for the control of animals within the Town boundaries, under the Cities, Towns and Villages Act. OCR-confirmed By-law #420 ('Domestic Animal Control By-law'). URL corrected to the actual PDF (/media/836).

Machine-readable: animal-control.json · Official website: http://fortsmith.ca · Last verified 2026-06-04 · Dogs & animal control across Canada