It still baffles me how a human could abandon a critter such as Slinky. People intentionally put the cat outside, confident that Fluffy can catch mice and survive.

That's so cruel!

Thank goodness the shelters usually go to a lot of trouble trying to get Fido and Fluffy back home. Alas, cats usually don't have identification and humans wait way too long to search for them.

You are so full of it! My dog is chipped (RFID). We as citizens of the Unitied States already are subjected to "LICENSES" to reach into our wallet.

You need to relax a little. This is a user fee more than a tax. It is reasonable that pet owners fund animal care. Or do you think we should not exercise controls for the animals that are abandoned/carelessly bred/in jeopardy etc.? If that the case maybe you should be subscribing to a different website. Something a little more selfish. The dog or cat fairy doesn't do the job for us. Minimal services- even rapid kill shelters cost money. Sadly we can't neuter abusive and neglectful pet owners.

Shelter funding should be done through animal sales and drop-off fees, as well as through fundraising. Animal control, if provided by a city or by the county, should already be funded by property taxes.

I agree. Our AC is funded through our property taxes, in addition to numerous fees, most of which I think are reasonable.

you and happy both agreed the funding should be done through property taxes and I don't doubt a lion's share of that occurs- but- isn't a user fee a better way to fund at least part of it? Besides, when the budget gets cut- and they all do, the things that have the smallest constituency gets cut first. Take a look at funding for the handicapped and mental health. TAKE A LOOK AT Sikeston MO. Talk about the fools rising to the top!

Shelter funding should be done through animal sales and drop-off fees, as well as through fundraising. Animal control, if provided by a city or by the county, should already be funded by property taxes.

Sorry- one other thing...Drop off fees are an invitation to encourage dumping- sometime in farm areas other times in even less hospitable areas. Abut 40 years ago I had to give up a dog I was trying to keep against all sense. If I had had to pay something I simply did not have, who knows? This memory is painful enough as it stands.

I understand we are taxed and fee'd to a fare-the-well, but the dinky fee for your pet license buys so much protection for him as well as strays, it's the bargain of the century.

I consider my dog licenses a cheap insurance policy for those in my care, and I'm glad the few dollars each costs help other animals sheltered by my animal services. Chips are great but they are not infallible, and don't do a thing for the greater community.

If only my property taxes gave me so much bang for the buck ...

When the city of Sikeston, MO wanted to round up all "pit bulls" and send them to high kill shelters, they did so by tracking the dogs through licensing records. A lot of dogs died because they were legally licensed.

A tag is only as good as the collar it's attached to. We have 5 thriving rescued pets, all microchipped. The same Animal Control that requires licenses ("to ensure your pet can return home"-their words) microchips any loose pet they acquire and bill the owner or new adopter.

So tags are an extra annual tax. It adds up with many pets. I prefer to spend on quality food and vet care. And we support a local all volunteer non-profit rescue.

Good point about Sikeston. I didn't know it had gotten that bad- but I shouldn't be surprised. Use of license records is violation of trust if nothing else...it seems even worse than that.
Dear Sikeston, Ooops- I thought it was a left handed gross-hound mix, You say it's a Pit bull? Sure doesn't look like it to me. I don't think so.
Does anyone reading this think that the idiots in Sikeston have a brain in their head? This is tragic and so unfair to animals and their owners.
I will not argue that Pits and every other breed can be dangerous- just like the Sikeston City Council. The Council has it in their mind to protect their population at all costs. Costs like suspending property rights, common sense and ample evidence that any breed can be dangerous. Maybe they should outlaw dogs period. Remember the first face transplant in France was the result of a dog. A Labrador. Come one Sikeston- are Labs next? And what about cars, fuels, guns and plastic bags- pretty dangerous stuff, huh?
Allowing this council to exist without a recall election is to the shame of everyone in that town. And while you may be personally uncomfortable around pits, you might remember the next breed could be one you like.
As for Licenses- the pet fairy ain't going do that work for you.

My own cat is licensed. He is also the first cat I have licensed. I adopted him at our county shelter last summer. This is a virtually no-kill shelter, and this cat had been there several months. He came tagged, micro-chipped, neutered and vaccinated. He is an elderly cat, apparently a russian blue. The shelter here will give you an older cat free if you are a "senior citizen". I paid a discounted rate of five dollars for his license. They have about a hundred cats awaiting good homes, and an overall adoption rate rate between eighty and ninety percent. They have a special program for pit bulls. This cat was virtually free of charge and is one of the most gentle, sweet and loving creatures I have seen. These nominal fees are money well spent, IMHO. An issue that needs to be dealt with that many communities place caps on the number of animals that may be kept. That discourages many people from licensing. For example, let's say you have the maximum number, and than your aunt dies, or your brother-in-law is deployed to Afghanistan, and you want to take of their pets. These laws need to be changed and our shelter, in Salt Lake City, is agitating for this. I plan to license my pets from here on

I agree. After a snowstorm, one of my dogs used the snowbank to his advantage and got over the fence. My phone rang as I frantically searched the neighborhood, it was a neighbor calling to tell me my dog had followed him, his son and their dog on their walk.

The neighbor told me my dog sort of fell in line with them and shadowed their walk so he took my dog home until he could get to a phone to call animal control.

I was a bit taken aback that animal control gave out my number rather than call themselves but I remain ever so thankful that my neighbor made sure my dog was safe -- he lived blocks away from me and crossed several streets on his walk. I felt a bit of a pang when I picked up my dog, my neighbor's son sadly asked if I was there to "take away" the dog, he wanted to keep him.