With dog license renewals for 2019 fast approaching, many residents are left asking "Why aren't there cat licenses?"

Dog owners are asked to pay $25 a year for a dog license and face a one $100 fine for having an unlicensed dog.

Stray cat populations are rising, and many residents are reporting property damage and discovering cat droppings on their property.

So where are the cat licenses?

While there are provisions in place regarding cats (specifically regarding the Responsible Pet Ownership bylaw), these regulations are not as rigid as they are regarding dogs.

Kelly Steinwand, Municipal Enforcement Manager for the Town of Okotoks, says cat licensing has been considered, though it would be rather pricey.

"The town has looked at this before and it's quite cost prohibitive to ge tinto a program to register everyone's cats. This does create additional workload for our peace officers, and also the requirement would mean that we would have to have a facility in order to deal with animals we have taken into custody."

Steinwand did say that rules regarding cats are being reviewed, and in doing this, they will seek community consultation regarding pet regulations.

"We are currently reviewing our Respectful Pet Ownership Bylaw and we're considering making some changes in regards to cats and registering cats and some provisions related to the management in our community. This is something that we wouldnt do on our own, we would certainly be reaching out to the community doing some community consultation; we know that these issues are important to the community related to pets and pet ownership."

Steinwand says once this feedback has been gathered, he hopes to present recommmendations to town council in early 2019, and hopefully have some new regulations in place by the end of that year.

 

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