Pets are allowed in Alberta Provincial Parks and Protected Areas. Please review all of our regulations before bringing a pet to a park.  

Regulations 

• All pets are required to be leashed no more than 2 metres, or caged, at all times while in Provincial Parks, Wildland Provincial Parks and Provincial Recreation Areas. This includes campgrounds.  
• Pets must be kept under control at all times.  
• Pick up after your pets and dispose of waste in garbage containers.  
• Pets are not allowed in or around comfort camping sites. 
  • Exception: At Sir Winston Churchill Provincial Park, pets are allowed in an additional camping units (trailer/tent) on site. Cabins #8 and #9 are pet friendly cabins. Guests will be charged an additional non-refundable fee of $20 per stay. 
• With the exception of certified partner dogs accompanying people with disabilities, pets are not allowed in public:  
  • Swimming areas 
  • Beaches 
  • Buildings 
• Pets are not permitted on most groomed ski trails unless designated. 
• Please ensure your dog doesn't bark excessively. 
• Do not leave your pet unattended at campsites.  
• When camping, store pet food in your vehicle or in bear-safe storage areas, as you would human food and garbage.  

Pets and Wildlife 

To help protect our Parks for everyone, including the animals that live there, it is important to keep your dog leashed at all times. Unleashed dogs can: 

• Disturb ground nesting birds, fawns and other young animals that can also be killed or injured by off-leash pets.  
• Be injured by wildlife such as skunks, porcupines, coyotes, and bears who will defend themselves in threatened.  
• Chase an agitated bear towards other people, or lead it back to you.  

Long term off-leash impact can result in wildlife moving from an area where they were once seen. As far as deer, rodents and birds are concerned, a dog is a carnivore. Even if they aren’t chased, wildlife tends to move away from dogs and may avoid anywhere they’ve been for days.  

• Wild animals rarely habituate to dogs, which means they may be avoiding their established territories, leading to people having fewer opportunities for sustainable and meaningful wildlife encounters and creating pressures in nearby areas where there is already a sustainable, native animal population. 
• Those contacts add up - The stress of repeated exposure to dogs means animals may not be eating normally, breeding or resting as much as they should, all leading to a suppressed immune function. 
• Wide-spread off-leash can affect us all - Dogs also impact animals and birds by passing on diseases to wildlife and even people. Harmful parasites found in their feces can pollute water and make it unsafe for swimming. 

For the enjoyment and safety of all, keep your dog leashed, under control and supervised at all times.  

Protective Dogs 

Some dog owners are surprised by the protective nature of their dog when strangers approach them in the park. Please hold your leashed dog firmly when approaching people throughout the park.  

Park staff, volunteer campground hosts, or small children may enter your campsite unexpectedly. Leashed or not, it is not advised to bring a dog with a history of aggression into a campground.  

Like other laws enforced by conservation officers under the Provincial Parks Act, violations of pet regulations can result in fines. If your dog is considered by a conservation officer to be a hazard or an annoyance to people, you may be required to remove the animal from the park, or be evicted.  

If you have any questions or a complaint about a dog while staying in the park, speak to onsite park staff, or call the park office.