HOA dog poop rules, fines and DNA testing: a guide for Michigan boards

It takes one board meeting to pass a dog poop rule. Making it stick takes clear wording, a process your documents allow, and common areas that stay clean between complaints.

Why do HOAs make dog poop rules?

Because piles draw complaints, carry germs and end up in the lake.

• Complaints. They cluster in the same spots: the mailbox kiosk, the entrance, the lawn beside the walking path. Reminder emails fade. A rule with a process doesn't.
• Health. The CDC warns that dog poop can carry germs that sicken people and animals, and it wants waste picked up, above all where kids may play. More on what dog poop can carry.
• Water. Macomb County Public Works oversees 475 county drains, and every one eventually carries storm water to Lake St. Clair. The county also warns that dog waste left on the ground gets washed into storm drains and ditches. Here's the route to the lake.

What should an HOA dog poop rule include?

Five parts, short enough to fit on a sign:

The ordinance is probably on your side already: our Macomb County dog poop laws guide found that 19 of the 22 communities we serve require immediate pickup anywhere off the dog owner's property. Cite your community's code section in the rule.

Can a Michigan HOA fine residents for dog poop?

Yes, if your governing documents give the board that power and it follows the process they require. Which law applies depends on whether you're a condominium.

Condominiums, including site condos

The Michigan Condominium Act (MCL 559.101 and following) covers more than buildings: the state's Condominium Buyer's Handbook says a site condominium of single-family detached homes must comply with it, too. As we read the Act in September 2026:

• Bylaws govern. A condominium is run under bylaws recorded as part of the master deed, and an amendment has no effect until it's recorded (MCL 559.153).
• Everyone complies. Co-owners, tenants and other occupants must follow the master deed, bylaws, and rules and regulations (MCL 559.165).
• Fines need notice and a hearing. Breaking the documents is grounds for relief such as damages or an injunction, plus other reasonable remedies the documents provide, including "the levying of fines against co-owners after notice and hearing thereon" (MCL 559.206). In a proceeding over a default, the winner recovers costs and reasonable attorney fees to the extent the documents expressly provide.
• Residents can push, too. A co-owner can sue to make the association enforce the documents, or sue another co-owner who isn't complying (MCL 559.207).

So ask your attorney: do our bylaws or rules provide for fines, what notice and hearing do they require, and how do they treat a renter's violation? Don't expect the state to referee: the handbook says the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs has no authority to enforce the Act or condo bylaws.

HOAs that aren't condominiums

A subdivision platted under the Land Division Act isn't a site condo, the handbook notes, even if the two look alike. There, the board's authority generally comes from the recorded deed restrictions and bylaws, which decide whether it can adopt rules or levy fines, and what steps come first. If they're silent on fines, a fine may not hold up. Your attorney can confirm what yours allow.

Either way, the city enforces its ordinance and the association enforces its documents. Macomb Township, for one, says on its HOA resources page that it can't help enforce an HOA's bylaws.

What does a sample HOA dog poop rule look like?

Here's an original example, not copied from any association's documents and not legal language. Fit it to your bylaws with your attorney.

Sample notice-and-fine steps

Also an example: the amounts are placeholders for your own fine schedule.

Keep a file: dates, photos, letters and hearing minutes. For a local yardstick, Center Line's code carries a $150 fine for leaving dog waste in a city park (Sec. 50-4).

How does dog poop DNA testing work?

In an HOA or apartment community, a lab keeps a DNA profile for each registered dog and matches unscooped waste against it. Here's how PooPrints, a program of BioPet Laboratories, describes it:

1. Swab. Residents swab each dog's cheek with a kit, register it and send it back.
2. Sample. Property staff collect a nickel-sized sample from an unscooped pile with a collection kit and return it.
3. Match. The lab matches it to a registered dog within 10 business days, PooPrints says, and emails the results.
4. Enforce. Your rules decide what follows. PooPrints' resident FAQ says it doesn't charge residents; DNA analysis fees are set at the community level.

On its home page, PooPrints claims its program can cut unscooped waste by up to 96%. That's the company's claim, not our finding. It doesn't publish DNA pricing, so expect a quote.

Adopt a DNA program the way your documents require, ask your attorney how it applies to tenants, guests and assistance animals, and keep notice and a hearing ahead of any fine.

Is dog poop DNA testing worth it?

For a stubborn problem it can be, as a layer on top of stations and scooping, not a substitute.

DNA testing's upside is proof: the board acts on a match, not a hunch. The downsides are cost, paperwork for every new dog, and a pile that still needs picking up.

What about goose droppings on lakefront common areas?

Give them their own line in the plan, because no dog rule, fine or DNA test reaches a goose. The Michigan DNR says most human-goose conflict happens where mowed lawns sit close to water, with molting geese leaving droppings on lawns, beaches, docks and sidewalks. A lakefront park, a canal walk or a lawn around a retention pond fits that picture.

That matters for the lake. A 2026 USGS report on Lake St. Clair Metropark Beach in Macomb County names waterfowl, particularly gulls and geese, as a likely source of the E. coli there.

Canada geese are protected under state and federal law, the DNR notes. So we leave the birds alone and clean up after them: we clear goose droppings from common lawns, paths and lakefront areas on a schedule, quoted after a walkthrough.

How do you keep HOA common areas free of dog poop?

With a routine, not a crackdown. Fines handle the few; the routine handles everyone else.

1. Stations where dogs walk. Our pet waste station guide covers placement, signs and service schedules.
2. A scooping schedule for lawns, paths, pond edges and dog runs, plus goose droppings on lakefront lawns.
3. Clear signs that state the rule, point to a station and cite the ordinance.
4. Steady communication: the rule in the welcome packet and newsletter, a reminder at the spring thaw, and visit photos shared with residents.
5. A fair process for repeat cases, with DNA testing if one spot keeps getting hit.

That's our job: we install pet waste stations, keep them stocked and emptied, and scoop common areas on a schedule, with goose-dropping cleanup for lakefront properties. You get a time-stamped photo report after every visit and one monthly invoice for all your properties. We're insured and can provide a certificate of insurance on request. Pricing follows a walkthrough: send us the details on our commercial page, and we'll reply within one business day.