Dewey Beach · Sussex County
Can dogs go on Dewey Beach?
Dogs are allowed on Dewey Beach today
All day, and off-leash is permitted if the dog is under your full control. Confirm what the town means by that before relying on it — "under control" is a judgement an officer makes, not a rule you can read.
Yes, year-round — Dewey is the only Delaware beach town that never closes to dogs. In summer they are limited to before 9:30am and after 5:30pm. You need a town dog license, and visitors get fined for skipping it.
The dates
Dewey Beach — dog rules by season
| Where | Dates | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Beach | May 23 – September 13 2026before 9:30 am and after 5:30 pmThe ordinance reads "the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend through the Sunday following Labor Day", so the dates move each year. | Dogs allowed, with limits Every other beach town on this coast shuts dogs out completely for the summer. Dewey is the exception. Leash required |
| Beach | September 14 2026 – May 22 2027 | Dogs allowed All day, and off-leash is permitted if the dog is under your full control. Confirm what the town means by that before relying on it — "under control" is a judgement an officer makes, not a rule you can read. |
Also true
- License
- Required for visitors too. Three-day, eight-day or lifetime, online or at Town Hall.
- Off-leash
- Permitted off-season if the dog is under full control. Leashed in the summer window.
- Cleanup
- Required at all times.
- Doodles in Dewey
- Late April, running 20+ years. Doodles are free to attend but still need the $5 town license.
You need a license
Every dog in Dewey Beach needs a town license, whether you live there or are visiting for a weekend, and it is on top of any state license or rabies tag you already hold. This is the single most common way visitors get fined here — the beach hours are widely repeated, the license almost never is.
What it costs
- 3-day temporary
- $5
- 8-day temporary
- $10
- Lifetime
- $37, plus $2 shipping
- Souvenir tag and lifetime license
- $52, plus $2 shipping
Where to get one
Online, on the town's own page
Quickest if you're not there yet.
Town Hall, 105 Rodney Avenue
Mon–Thu 8am–4:30pm, Fri 8am–6pm, Sat 9am–3pm, Sun 9am–2pm. It opens on weekends, which is what makes a visitor license possible.
The kiosk at the Town Hall parking lot entrance
Temporary licenses only. It is automated, so it works outside office hours.
Bring: The month and year of your dog's last rabies vaccination. You enter it at purchase.
Buy a temporary one and the confirmation email IS the license — keep a screenshot or a printout on you. A lifetime license comes as a physical tag in the post, so it's no use for a trip this weekend. All purchases are non-refundable.
Dewey is not closed to dogs in summer
Aggregator pages tend to flatten the whole Delaware coast into one rule and tell you dogs are banned from the beaches all summer. That is wrong here. Dewey never closes — it narrows to early mornings and evenings between Memorial Day weekend and the Sunday after Labor Day, and runs all day the rest of the year. If you want a Delaware ocean beach with a dog in July, this is the closest one to Rehoboth by a wide margin. The catch is the license, not the hours.
Open in Google Maps to Dewey Beach public beach (opens Google Maps)
About Dewey Beach
A mile long and two blocks wide, ocean on one side and Rehoboth Bay on the other. The only Delaware beach town that never closes to dogs — and the only one that requires a town dog license.
- Water
- Ocean and bay
- Boardwalk
- None
- Parking
- Paid, in season.
- County
- Sussex County
Who to call in Dewey Beach
Town of Dewey Beach
105 Rodney Ave
Mon–Thu 8–4:30 · Fri 8–6 · Sat 9–3 · Sun 9–2
Where you buy the dog license. Open weekends in season, which matters if you arrive on a Saturday.
Dewey Beach Police, non-emergency
If something goes wrong
Delmarva Animal Emergency Center
About 1 hour1482 E Lebanon Rd, Dover, DE 19901
Hours Mon–Thu 6pm – 8am · Fri–Sun 24 hours
Not confirmed by phone — ring before you drive.
NOT 24/7 on weekdays — it opens at 6pm and closes at 8am. A Tuesday afternoon emergency is not covered here.
Pet's ER
About 1 hour402 Punkin Ct, Salisbury, MD 21804
Hours Not confirmed
Not confirmed by phone — ring before you drive.
Hours not published anywhere I can reach, and I have not rung them. It is the closest option to Fenwick and Bethany on the map, which is exactly why that blank matters — do not drive here on the strength of this listing without ringing first. Also unconfirmed: whether they take Delaware clients.
Windcrest Animal Hospital
About 1 hour 30 minutesWilmington, DE
Hours 24 hours, every day
Not confirmed by phone — ring before you drive.
A second genuine round-the-clock emergency room in Wilmington — nights, weekends and holidays. Its existence is why this page no longer says anywhere is the only 24-hour option in Delaware.
BluePearl Pet Hospital, Christiana
About 1 hour 45 minutes106 Geoffrey Dr, Newark, DE 19713
Hours 24 hours, every day
Not confirmed by phone — ring before you drive.
Genuinely 24 hours, every day, no appointment. At the top of the state, though — a long drive from the beaches. This record used to call it the only round-the-clock option in Delaware. That is no longer true.
Rehoboth Beach Animal Hospital
In town20259 Coastal Highway, Rehoboth Beach, DE 19971
Hours Mon–Thu 8am – 6:30pm · Fri 8am – 5:30pm · Closed Sat & Sun
Not confirmed by phone — ring before you drive.
Urgent care on weekdays, with a virtual waiting room, inside the published office hours. Closed Saturday and Sunday — which is the half of the week a beach trip is most likely to need it.
- Emergency: people
- 911
Always. Beach emergencies, injuries, anything time-critical.
- Delaware SPCA
- Not confirmed
Stray and loose-dog intake. Number not yet confirmed.
- Animal Poison Control (ASPCA)
- 888-426-4435
24 hours. A consultation fee usually applies. Useful for a swallowed bait, a bloom exposure, or anything eaten off the sand.
Hours at coastal practices move with the season and none of these numbers has been confirmed first-hand yet. Call ahead rather than driving on trust, and pick your one now — before you need it.
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The other towns
No two of these share a set of dates. If your trip crosses more than one, check each.
- Can dogs go on Rehoboth Beach? — shut May 15 – September 15
- Can dogs go on Bethany Beach? — shut May 15 – September 30
- Can dogs go on Lewes Beach? — open all year, before 8 am and after 6:30 pm in season
- Can dogs go on Fenwick Island beach? — shut May 1 – September 30
- All five, side by side
- How I check this, and what I do when I'm wrong