THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Dogs in the city, be it the pets or strays, will have to wear micro chips from now on since the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation will on Wednesday launch its comprehensive project to make the city rabies-free in two years. Pet owners have to get their dogs registered with the corporation. Timely vaccination of pets certified by a veterinarian is a pre-condition for the licence. The micro chip implanted in dog’s neck will have details such as its picture, owner’s name, last vaccination date etc. It will be stored in a central database maintained by the corporation.
Responsible ownership
Needless to say, getting the licence and micro chipping done will be the pet owner’s responsibility. But the civic body is planning to provide the procedure hassle free. The city has 16 government veterinary hospitals including the district veterinary centre at PMG Junction. Pet owners can take their pets to any public facility and get these procedures done. Or they have the option of going to a private clinic.
At present only a third of the pet owners go to the government veterinary hospital and most take their pets to private clinics.
Corporation plans to empanel private vets and allow them to issue an intimation for the pets they treat. Private clinics will remain open all the time while the government veterinary centers will work from 9 am to 3 pm.
“People can take their pets to a clinic after office hours. An empanelled vet can give the vaccination, register the details and install the microchip. He or she can access the custom made website and enter these details. Pet owners using the intimation given by the private vet can make the payment electronically or through Akshaya centres if they are not willing to come to public veterinary centres. The licence will be issued from the centre or emailed,” said Senior Veterinary Surgeon of the Veterinary hospital at Pettah, Dr Prem Jain.
For registration, licence and microchip Rs 100 will be charged for each dog. A weblink will be available on corporation website under the R-ABC programme. A dedicated phone line will be set up to address the queries of pet owners.
A survey is being conducted to identifying the population of pets in the 100 wards in the corporation.
“Micro chip installation and licensing will make it difficult for abandonment,” said Dr Prem. Breeders too will have a take a licence. The fee will be Rs 500 per dog. Pups will be made accountable. A two-month-old pup too will have to be registered.
Stray dog control
The city corporation is embarking on a major programme to address the problem associated with stray dogs. It plans to spend Rs 250 on each stray dog in the city for sterilising, vaccinating, installing micro chip to identify the location and vaccination date etc. The Veterinary Hospital at Thiruvallam is being modified to conduct at least 20 sterilisation surgeries. Cages for 200 dogs for post operation care have been set up. Five doctors and 8 dog catchers will be there to carry out the procedure. Besides a rapid action team will be set up to address emergency situation. Minister for Forests, Animal Husbandry and Zoos, K Raju will inaugurate the programme at the Veterinary hospital at Pettah on Wednesday.