Off-Leash Dog Parks in Ottawa: Conroy Pit, Fenced Parks, Rules

Ottawa has two sets of dog rules, depending on who owns the land. The City runs the neighbourhood parks: about 175 are off-leash, and a dog elsewhere stays on a leash of up to 3 m. The National Capital Commission (NCC) runs the Greenbelt and Gatineau Park, including the two big off-leash pits, Conroy and Bruce. There the leash limit is 2 m, with no more than two dogs each. Here’s where to go, checked in October 2026.

The big two: Conroy Pit and Bruce Pit

Conroy Pit, south Ottawa. In the NCC’s Pine Grove forest. Dogs can be off the leash in the marked area, but must be leashed everywhere else, including the parking lot, and aren’t allowed at the toboggan hill (NCC, Pine Grove).

Bruce Pit, west end. In Stony Swamp, off parking lot P12, with the same rules: off-leash only in the marked area, leashed in the lot, no dogs at the toboggan hill (NCC, Stony Swamp).

Both are open to off-leash dogs all year. Neither page says they’re fenced, so come with good recall.

Fenced city dog parks

These City parks have a fenced off-leash area, with dogs on a leash in the rest of the park:

• Jack Purcell Park, Centretown (320 Jack Purcell Lane)
• Sylvia Holden Park, the Glebe (641 O’Connor Street)
• Riverain Park, Vanier (400 North River Road)
• Garfield Park, College ward (2019 Garfield Avenue)
• Big Bird Park, Orléans (936 Lawnsberry Drive)
• Shefford Sports Park, Beacon Hill (815 Shefford Road)
• Rideau View Park, Riverside South (910 Earl Armstrong Road)

In Kanata, Watt’s Creek, Escarpment (Chimo) and Dorey parks are designated off-leash. Some parks have time rules. McNabb Park bans dogs on weekdays from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm, and Pioneer Plains in Stittsville is off-leash only from 7:30 to 9:30 am. The City’s dog parks map lets you search any park by name.

The rules in city parks

• On a leash unless the park is signed off-leash. The leash can be up to 3 m and must be held in your hand.
• Off-leash still means in sight and under voice control, and you leash up if trouble starts.
• Stay 5 m from play structures, wading pools and splash pads. You can walk past on a paved path.
• Pick up the poop.

These come from the City’s Animal Care and Control By-law. A ward guide from early 2025 sums them up (City toolkit).

Where dogs can’t go

• Mooney’s Bay Park: no dogs.
• Mud Lake: no dogs or other pets (NCC).
• NCC beaches, and within 3 m of any shoreline on NCC land, picnic areas, campgrounds, play areas, cross-country ski trails and the Rideau Canal Skateway (NCC regulations). NCC fines run from $100 to $500.
• Andrew Haydon Park and Lansdowne: on a leash only.

Greenbelt trails

Most natural Greenbelt trails allow leashed dogs from 15 April to 30 November. In winter, dogs are allowed only on the multi-use pathways and at Conroy and Bruce pits. Some trails never allow dogs, including Old Quarry, Jack Pine, Beaver, Sarsaparilla and the Mer Bleue Bog Trail (NCC, Greenbelt).

Gatineau Park

Across the river in Quebec, also run by the NCC (dog walking in Gatineau Park):

• 15 April to 30 November: leashed dogs on most official trails.
• 1 December to 14 April: only on Sugarbush, Lauriault, Pioneers and the Capital Pathway, and on the winter walking trails. No dogs on snowshoe trails.
• Never: Pink Lake, King Mountain, Luskville Falls, the Equestrian trail, beaches, picnic areas and campgrounds.
• Always on a leash of 2 m or less, no more than two dogs each, and take the poop bag home.

Registration

Every dog in Ottawa needs to be registered with the City each year, with the tag on its collar. You can register or renew online through MyServiceOttawa or at a Client Service Centre. Check the current fee on the City’s pet registration page.

Coyotes

The NCC’s advice: keep your dog on a leash outside off-leash areas. If a coyote comes close, stand tall, wave your arms and shout, and don’t turn your back or run (NCC).

Getting there

Check OC Transpo’s travelling-with-pets page before you take a dog on the bus or O-Train. For the pits and Gatineau Park, a car is easiest.

Dog parks in other Canadian cities: Toronto, Mississauga and Brampton, Vancouver, Calgary and Edmonton.