Rules for nuisance and dangerous dogs

About 6,000 dogs live in Kerkrade. As a municipality, we want dogs, their owners and people without dogs to be able to live together in a pleasant and safe way.

In recent years, there have unfortunately been several instances in Kerkrade where dogs have shown aggressive behavior and/or bitten a person or another animal.  

We believe that people and animals should be able to move freely in public spaces without being bitten or attacked by dogs. This is why in Kerkrade we have separate rules for dangerous dogs in addition to the dog policy. So that we as a municipality can act when a dog behaves dangerously towards people and/or animals. 

What these rules are, we describe in the "policy rule on dangerous dogs. We briefly summarize the policy rule here. The complete policy rule can be reviewed on the Government's website

Have you or your animal been bitten by a dog? Please report it to the police or the enforcement hotline. 

Measures for nuisance behavior

Does a dog bite a person or animal but there are no serious injuries or consequences?
Then we call this nuisance behavior. Also when a dog harasses persons or animals without biting, we call this nuisance behavior.
The owner of this dog will first receive a warning. We expect him to take all measures to prevent repetition.
In some cases, the mayor may decide that the nuisance dog must be kept on a leash and/or wear a muzzle for the rest of its life. 

Measures for dangerous behavior

Has a dog exhibited nuisance behavior on several occasions? Or has a dog injured a person or animal so badly that it needs medical treatment or dies as a direct result of the injury? Then we call that dangerous behavior. When a dog causes serious damage to property, we also call this dangerous behavior.
A dangerous dog is required to wear a muzzle and be kept on a leash for the rest of its life. This obligation applies when the dog walks in a public place or on someone else's property.

What if the owner does not comply?

If the owner of a dog subject to a leash and/or muzzle obligation does not comply, the mayor imposes an "order under penalty" on that owner. This means that the owner must pay a sum of money each time he does not comply with the obligation.
The mayor can also impose an order under penalty immediately after the leash and/or muzzle obligation. Then it is called a 'preventive order under penalty'. This happens when there is a very high probability that the owner will not comply with the rules right from the start. 

Is a nuisance or dangerous dog that for the rest of its life?

In principle, the measure applies as long as the dog lives. However, if a dog has not shown nuisance or dangerous behavior for two years, the owner can ask the mayor via a letter to terminate the leash and/or muzzle obligation and/or the order under penalty.
To end the leash and/or muzzle obligation, the owner must be able to show the mayor the result of a behavior test of the dog. This behavior test must show that the dog's behavior has improved. And that the chances are small that the dog will show annoying or dangerous behavior again. Such a test must be administered by a professional behavioral evaluator. This person must send the results directly to the mayor.
If the mayor then judges that the dog is no longer a nuisance or dangerous, the measures can be lifted.