The state-level rules every owner and walker in Ohio should know. Local leash lengths, licensing and off-leash rules are set by each city — find those on the city pages below.
Ohio is the sharpest walker-liability state — holding the leash makes you a strictly-liable "keeper" under ORC § 955.28, and assumption of risk is not a defense.
Under ORC § 955.28(B), the owner, keeper, or harborer of a dog is strictly liable for any injury, death, or loss it causes — no prior viciousness needed, and non-bite injuries (knockdowns) are covered. Owner is the legal owner; keeper is whoever has custody or control of the dog (which includes a walker or sitter); harborer is someone in control of the premises where the dog lives who acquiesces to it. A 2026 Ohio Supreme Court decision narrowed the harborer category for property owners but did not change the keeper category.
The defenses are narrow and statutory only: the victim was trespassing or committing a crime (more than a minor misdemeanor), or was teasing, tormenting, or abusing the dog on the property. Assumption of risk is not a defense — unlike California, an Ohio handler cannot be met with that argument, but neither can a handler use it to escape being the strictly-liable keeper.
There are two paths with two clocks: the statutory strict-liability claim has a 6-year limit (ORC 2305.07), while a common-law negligence or scienter claim (needed for punitive damages) has a 2-year limit (2305.10) — a long tail of exposure.
Avery's Law expanded the dangerous and vicious-dog definitions and added fencing and liability-insurance requirements. Leash and licensing are local — dogs must be licensed, and rabies vaccination is required. Ohio applies modified comparative negligence with a 51% bar.
This is general information about Ohio law, not legal advice. Confirm current rules with the official state and municipal sources.