Dog Fences in Northwest Arkansas

Most NWA towns won’t let a dog live on a chain. Here’s what each one requires, and what actually holds a dog.

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The Short Answer

In Fayetteville, Farmington, Springdale and Prairie Grove, you cannot keep a dog chained to a stake or a tree. Fayetteville and Farmington ban chaining to a fixed point outright, Springdale allows only a trolley on a cable run, and Prairie Grove simply says every dog has to be indoors or inside a fence. Rogers, Centerton and Siloam Springs still allow a tether, with conditions.

So for most of Northwest Arkansas the question is not whether to fence the dog, it is what kind. Below is every town’s rule with the code section, followed by the honest version of which fence holds which dog. We build all of them.

What Each Town Requires

  • Fayetteville: dogs and cats four months and older may not be chained or staked to a fixed point, and an enclosure has to give at least 100 square feet per animal (§92.01–92.02). A fenced yard, a run or a trolley are the options.
  • Farmington: no permanent chaining or staking to a fixed point. Enclosure size is set by the dog: 100 sq ft for a large dog (over 20 inches at the withers or over 50 pounds), 80 sq ft medium, 50 sq ft small, and the same numbers apply to an electronic containment fence (§6.04.02). Households are capped at five adult dogs and cats, and a subdivision covenant that allows fewer wins (§6.04.03).
  • Prairie Grove: every dog kept in town must be confined indoors or in a fenced area of sufficient height and strength to prevent escape. There is no tethering option at all, and the fenced area may not include the approach to the front door of the house (Ch. 6.04). The city’s animal control page puts it in six words: all dogs must be kept in a fenced yard.
  • Springdale: direct-point chaining or tethering to a stationary object is prohibited (§14-36). A trolley on a cable run is allowed: one dog per run, a properly fitted collar or harness, no choke or pinch collars, and a swivel on at least one end. A dog declared potentially dangerous needs a locked pen of at least 150 sq ft with secure sides and a secure top; if the pen has no floor, the sides have to be set two feet into the ground.
  • Centerton: a fence, an enclosure or a building, or a chain or leash of at least 15 feet fixed to a stationary object, and that anchor may not be within 15 feet of a neighbor’s house (§6.04.06). Vicious dogs are banned from the city entirely. More than four dogs or cats needs a private kennel permit.
  • Siloam Springs: a pen, enclosure, building, or a chain or leash on the collar (§10-4). An outdoor dog pen must sit at least 40 feet from any home other than yours and give at least 100 sq ft per dog over six months old.
  • Rogers: an adequate fence, enclosure or building, or a chain or leash attached to a substantial stationary object (Ch. 6). Rogers sets no minimum pen size.
  • Bentonville and Bella Vista both have specific rules for electric and underground pet fences, covered below.
Sources: each city’s code of ordinances, sections as cited. Code checked August 2026.

What Actually Holds a Dog

The code tells you a fence is required. It does not tell you which one keeps a 70-pound dog in the yard. This does.

Jumpers and climbers

  • Six feet of solid wood privacy fence is the standard answer. A dog that cannot see the mail carrier does not launch at the mail carrier.
  • Run the boards vertically on a dog fence. Horizontal boards are a ladder, and so are exposed rails on the yard side.
  • Big lots where privacy fence gets expensive per foot: no-climb woven wire with 2-inch by 4-inch openings, the same mesh we use for horse fence. A paw cannot get purchase in it.

Diggers

  • Bury a strip of wire mesh along the bottom of the fence, turned outward under the grass, or set a concrete mow strip under the fence line. Dogs dig at the base; give them nothing to move.
  • Gates are where the gap opens up first. A concrete pad or a threshold under the gate closes it.

Chain link, done right

  • Chain link is the most cost-effective dog fence there is, in 4, 6 and 8 foot heights, galvanized or black vinyl-coated. Standard 2-inch mesh is fine for most dogs.
  • It does not block the view, which matters for a barker or a fence-fighter. If your dog reacts to everything that walks by, privacy slats or a solid fence will save you and your neighbors a lot of grief.

Aluminum and small dogs

  • Ornamental aluminum looks the best of any option, but standard picket spacing is wide enough for a small dog or a puppy to slip through. A tighter picket section along the bottom of the panel solves it. Ask for it before the order goes in.

Gates

  • Every dog fence needs a gate that latches every time. We put metal frames and metal posts on every wood gate we build so the gate does not sag out of its latch in year three.
  • A self-closing hinge is cheap insurance against the one time somebody leaves it open.

Invisible and Electric Fences

Underground pet fences are legal in every town we have checked, and several towns have something specific to say about them.

  • Siloam Springs: any wireless or underground invisible fence must be marked with signage sufficient to warn people lawfully on the property (§10-4).
  • Bentonville: any electric shock system used to restrain an animal needs a warning sign on each external side, no more than 100 feet apart, and the voltage may not injure the animal (§6-38).
  • Farmington: an electronic containment fence counts as an enclosure, so the 50 / 80 / 100 square foot minimums apply to the area inside the wire (§6.04.02).
  • Prairie Grove (Ch. 11.44) and Bella Vista (§109-077) both expressly allow underground electric pet fences while banning above-ground electric fence on ordinary residential lots.

The honest limit. A buried wire keeps a trained dog in. It does not keep another dog, a coyote or a child out, and it does nothing for a dog that will take the correction to chase something. Where a town’s code asks for a fenced area “of sufficient height and strength,” as Prairie Grove’s does, ask animal control before relying on one.

Sources: Siloam Springs §10-4; Bentonville §6-38; Farmington §6.04.02; Prairie Grove Ch. 11.44; Bella Vista §109-077

Sizing a Dog Run

If you are building a run rather than fencing the whole yard, these are the floors, not the goals. A dog that lives in a run needs more than the minimum.

  • 100 square feet per dog is the number in Fayetteville and Siloam Springs, and for large dogs in Farmington. That is a 10 by 10 pen for one dog, 10 by 20 for two.
  • Farmington scales it: 50 sq ft small, 80 medium, 100 large.
  • Springdale’s 150 sq ft applies to dogs declared potentially dangerous, and that pen needs a top.
  • Siloam Springs sets the pen back 40 feet from any neighboring house. On a narrow lot that decides where the run can go before anything else does.
  • Prairie Grove will not let the fenced area take in the front-door approach, so a run has to sit beside or behind the house.

The run at the top of this page is one of ours, in Lincoln: a concrete pad, a covered section for shade, and galvanized chain link with a walk gate. That is what a working run looks like.

A Dog Fence Is Still a Fence

The animal code says you need one. The zoning code still decides how tall it can be and where it can go, and the two are written by different departments.

  • Front yards are capped almost everywhere: 3 feet in Springdale, 3½ feet in Centerton, 4 feet in Rogers and Bentonville, 36 inches solid or 48 inches see-through in Prairie Grove, 3 feet opaque or 5 feet open on the front line in Siloam Springs. That is why most dog fences enclose the back and side yards and stop at the front corner of the house.
  • Permits: Bentonville, Bella Vista and Prairie Grove require a fence permit; Siloam Springs requires one ($10 residential) with an inspection before you build; Fayetteville and Centerton only above 7 feet; Farmington at 8 feet and up; Rogers only above 7 feet; Springdale none.
  • Easements: a fence on a utility easement is allowed in most towns but the utility keeps the right to get through it, and Prairie Grove requires a gate at each end of the easement run. Prairie Grove bans fences in drainage easements outright; Fayetteville bans them wherever they could impede drainage.
  • HOA: your covenants can be stricter than the city on height, material and color, and in Farmington they can even cut the number of dogs you are allowed to keep.

Every one of those rules is spelled out on our city pages: Fayetteville, Farmington, Springdale, Rogers, Bentonville, Bella Vista, Centerton, Prairie Grove and Siloam Springs.

Dog Fence FAQ

Do I have to have a fence for my dog in Fayetteville?

Effectively, yes, if the dog spends time outside unattended. Fayetteville bans chaining or staking a dog to a fixed point and requires at least 100 square feet of enclosure per animal (§92.01–92.02). That leaves a fenced yard, a run, or a trolley system.

Can I chain my dog in the yard?

Depends on the town.

  • No: Fayetteville, Farmington and Prairie Grove.
  • Trolley only: Springdale, one dog per cable run, no choke or pinch collar, swivel on the line.
  • Yes, with a rule: Centerton, at least 15 feet of chain and the anchor at least 15 feet from a neighbor’s house.
  • Yes: Rogers and Siloam Springs.
How big does a dog run have to be?

100 square feet per dog in Fayetteville and Siloam Springs. Farmington scales it to the dog: 50 square feet small, 80 medium, 100 large. Springdale requires 150 square feet with a secure top for a dog declared potentially dangerous. Rogers and Centerton publish no minimum. Treat those as the legal floor; a dog that lives in a run should have more.

What is the best fence for a dog that jumps or climbs?

Six feet of solid privacy fence with the boards running vertically and no rails exposed on the dog’s side. Height stops the jump; the solid face stops the trigger; vertical boards take away the ladder. On acreage, 2-inch by 4-inch no-climb mesh does the same job at a lower cost per foot.

What about a dog that digs out?

Give the dog nothing to move at the base of the fence. A strip of wire mesh buried along the bottom and turned outward under the grass, or a concrete mow strip under the fence line, stops most diggers. Pay attention to gates: the gap under a gate is where the first escape usually happens, and a concrete pad or threshold under it closes that off.

Does an invisible fence count?

It is legal everywhere we have checked, and Prairie Grove and Bella Vista name underground pet fences as allowed. Siloam Springs requires warning signs on any invisible fence and Bentonville requires signs every 100 feet on any electric restraint system. Farmington applies its square-footage minimums to the area inside the wire. Where the code asks for a fenced area of sufficient height and strength, as Prairie Grove’s does, confirm with animal control before you rely on a buried wire.

Will a dog fence need a permit?

It is a fence, so the town’s normal fence permit rule applies. Bentonville, Bella Vista and Prairie Grove require a permit for most new fences. Siloam Springs requires a $10 residential permit and an inspection before you build. Fayetteville, Rogers and Centerton only require one above 7 feet, Farmington at 8 feet and up, and Springdale has no fence permit. Each of our city pages walks through it.

Can my dog fence go in the front yard?

Only a short one. Most towns cap front-yard fences at 3 to 4 feet, which is not a dog fence for anything bigger than a spaniel, and Prairie Grove will not let a dog enclosure include the front-door approach at all. That is why nearly every dog fence in Northwest Arkansas encloses the back and side yards and ties into the house at the front corners.

Ready to Fence the Dog?

Kismet Fence builds wood privacy, chain link, no-climb wire and aluminum fences across Northwest Arkansas, with metal frames and metal posts standard on every wood gate and a lifetime workmanship warranty on the work. Tell us about the dog and the yard and we will tell you which fence, in writing, for free.

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Sources: Fayetteville Code of Ordinances §92.01–92.02; Farmington Municipal Code §6.04.02–6.04.03; Prairie Grove Municipal Code Ch. 6.04 and Ch. 11.44; Springdale Code of Ordinances §14-36; Centerton Municipal Code §6.04.06; Siloam Springs Code of Ordinances §10-4; Rogers Code of Ordinances Ch. 6; Bentonville Municipal Code §6-38; Bella Vista Ch. 109 §109-077. Code checked August 2026. Animal ordinances change; when a citation or an inspection is on the line, confirm with that city’s animal control office.