Despite outrage, Iran expands dog-walking ban across multiple provinces

What happened: On Sunday, the city of Kashmar in Iran’s Razavi Khorasan province banned dog walking, the latest in a series of similar actions across the country. Announcing the ban, Kashmar’s public prosecutor said that dog walking “disrupts public order.”

Over the past week, cities across several Iranian provinces, including Hamadan, Ilam and Golestan, have enacted similar bans. The move builds on a 2019 police directive in the capital, Tehran, and now includes cities such as Kermanshah, Hamadan, Kerman, Boroujerd, Robat Karim, Lavasanat and others, according to Iranian media reports.

Abbas Najafi, the prosecutor of Hamadan province, announced last Tuesday that walking dogs in urban areas, parks, public places and while using public transport, unless in special cages, is now prohibited. Najafi and other officials have said the ban is necessary to protect “public health” and physical and psychological safety.

Public prosecutor Mohammad Mousavian introduced similar measures in Isfahan on May 31. In addition to banning dog walking and banning dogs from public transport, he ordered the closure of unauthorized veterinary clinics and pet shops.

Meanwhile, on June 6 in the northwestern city of Khalkhal in Iran’s Ardabil province, public prosecutor Mozaffar Rezaei said those seen “walking dogs in parks, public spaces or carrying them in their vehicles” will face consequences, according to state news agency ILNA.

Reactions on social media among Iranians were mixed, with many pushing back against the ban and others questioning why the government is focused on dog walking. One person wrote on the social platform X: “There are more than 2 million stray dogs in the country, and these days, governors are announcing a ban on dog walking in cities!”

Another X user called the ban “nonsense.”

Know more: No nationwide law explicitly bans dog walking or ownership in Iran, but in 2021, a bill backed by 75 Iranian parliamentarians was proposed that would make the buying, selling and keeping of a wide range of pets — including dogs and cats — illegal. Though the bill was never passed, restrictions on dogs and dog walking have continued to expand.

Lawmakers have cited various articles in Iran’s Islamic Penal Code to support the bans and potential national legislation, including Article 688, which addresses offenses against public health, and Article 638, which concerns “public morality” and is also used to justify mandatory hijab laws.

Since the ban was introduced in Tehran in 2019, dog owners in the capital have faced fines and, in some cases, arrest. However, enforcement has reportedly been inconsistent and largely ineffective. As dog ownership grows in urban areas, many in Tehran continue to keep and walk their dogs. For some, owning a dog has become a quiet act of protest against Iran’s religious rigidity. 

Background: The idea that dogs are unclean is rooted in an Islamic interpretation that considers certain animals, including dogs, as “najis,” or ritually impure. While the Quran does not explicitly ban dog ownership, some Hadiths — sayings attributed to the Prophet Muhammad — discourage keeping dogs as pets, particularly inside the home, except for utilitarian purposes. These interpretations have influenced clerical attitudes in Iran, where religious authorities often equate dog ownership with moral decline and Western cultural infiltration.

In 2017, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei stated that keeping dogs for reasons other than herding, hunting or guarding is “considered reprehensible.”