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Yellowstone National Park Pets
Pets are prohibited in the backcountry and on trails and boardwalks for the following reasons:
Yellowstone National Park is a designated natural area where wildlife are free to roam undisturbed. Park visitors should be able to enjoy native wildlife in their natural environment without the disruption of other people's pets.
Pets occasionally escape from their owners. Domestic animals generally lack the ability to survive in the wild.
Yellowstone is bear country, and domestic animals (especially dogs) and bears are traditionally antagonists. A loose dog can lead a bear directly back to you.
There is a strong possibility that your pet could become prey for a bear, coyote, owl, or other predator.
There is a possibility of exchange of diseases between domestic animals and wildlife.
Thermal areas pose particular hazards to pets. Boiling water in pools and thermal channels can cause severe or fatal burns if your pet decides to take a drink or go for a swim.
This includes any areas within 100 feet of roads, parking areas, and campgrounds. Pets must be kept under physical control at all times - caged, crated, or on a leash not to exceed six feet in length.
If necessary, pets may remain in your vehicle while you are viewing attractions near roads and parking areas. However, we care about your pet's well being. Be sure to provide sufficient ventilation for its comfort and survival.
Pets running at large may be impounded and the owner charged for the care and feeding of the animal. By law, any domestic animal observed by authorities to be molesting or killing wildlife may be destroyed if necessary for public safety or the protection of wildlife.
The owner is responsible for clean-up and disposal of all pet feces. Please be thoughtful of other visitors as well as your pet.
Xanterra Parks Resorts, the park lodging concessioner, allows pets in some cabin facilities.
There are no kennel facilities within Yellowstone National Park.
Maine ocean islands provide the only nesting sites for Atlantic puffins in the United States. Eastern Egg Rock in the midcoast region, Seal Island and Matinicus Rock at the mouth of Penobscot Bay, and Machias Seal Island and Petit Manan Island off the downeast coast provide habitat for more than 4,000 puffins each summer.