§ 104. License fees.

The annual license fee for each dog or cat shall be Five Dollars ($5.00). A three (3) year license for a dog or cat may be obtained for Fifteen Dollars ($15.00). The owner of a dog or cat permanently identified by tattoo or microchip may license the animal for a period of three (3) years for the annual one (1) year fee of Five Dollars ($5.00). No fee will be required for the registration of a dog that is used as a guide for the blind, used as a guide for the auditory impaired, used as a support service dog for persons with disabilities, or actively involved in law enforcement activities.

Except in cases in which three-year immunization has been performed, licenses for one-year rabies vaccinations shall expire and must be renewed on the last day of the twelfth month from when the rabies vaccination was administered as specified in this chapter. In cases of a three-year immunity, the license shall expire and must be renewed on the last day of the thirty-sixth month as specified in this chapter. No dog or cat may be licensed without a current valid rabies immunization certificate and, unless the owner has secured a hobbyist exemption permit as required in this chapter, proof of sterilization.

Individuals may remit to the administering veterinarian licensing fees required by this title at the time the dog or cat is vaccinated for rabies; or individuals may obtain a license directly from and pay the required fee directly to the Director of Finance upon demonstration that the animal has been properly vaccinated against rabies and, unless the owner has secured a hobbyist exemption permit as required in this chapter, has been spayed or neutered. There shall be no prorating for partial years.

Veterinarians who voluntarily collect the licensing fee at the time of administering the rabies vaccine shall be required to remit to the Director of Finance on a monthly basis all fees collected, along with a copy of the registration certificate furnished by the Director of Finance for the animals licensed. Veterinarians shall be permitted to keep twenty-five percent (25%) of the licensing fees collected as a handling fee. No special reporting requirements of those clients choosing to license directly with the Director of Finance shall be placed upon the veterinarians.

Animals permanently identified by means of tattoo or microchip implant may be licensed for a three-year period in conjunction with a three-year vaccination for the price of one (1) annual fee, provided that the tattoo number or the microchip code is recorded on the rabies certificate completed by the veterinarian at the time of vaccination.

Upon registration, there shall be delivered to the owner metallic tags, stamped with the license number and the year in which issued. Such tags shall at all times be attached to the collar or harness worn by the dog or cat for which the certificate was issued. If such tag is lost or destroyed, the owner shall apply in writing or in person for a new tag by presentation of the applicable registration ticket, accompanied by a fee of One Dollar ($1.00).

(Ord. Nos. 13559, 19038, 19143; Ord. No. 21979, § 1, 12-18-2008)