CHENNAI: Pet owners who fail to obtain licences for their pet dogs and cats by November 24 will be fined Rs 5,000 by the city corporation.
Also, pet owners who bring their dogs to public spaces without a leash will be fined Rs 500, as per a resolution passed in the Greater Chennai Corporation council meeting on Thursday.
Corporation staff will be deployed for a door-to-door verification following the lapse of the deadline, the resolution stated. The fine for not keeping dogs on a leash in public spaces is to be collected by the sanitary and conservancy inspectors of the respective wards.
As part of outlining the conditions for obtaining the licence and the responsibilities of pet owners, the resolution stated that no pet owners should allow their dogs to defecate on the streets during their walks.
In case the dogs defecate on the roadside, it is the duty of the owners to clean it, the resolution stated.
It also asks owners to take responsibility for spaying/neutering their pets; ensure their vaccination, and make sure they are not a nuisance to others in public spaces.
According to the city corporation, obtaining pet licences and microchipping the dogs were key in tracking the yearly administration of anti-rabies vaccination (ARV) in pet dogs and in discouraging pet abandonment.
Pet licences can be obtained online by owners after filling up the application form, which collects information regarding the pet's photographs and vaccination certificates, along with a fee of Rs 50.
They must also microchip the dogs with details such as the owner’s name, address, microchip ID and the vaccination status.
The applications will then be reviewed by the zonal veterinary officers before the licences are issued. So far, 9,579 pet licences have been issued by the corporation, while the number of pet dogs is estimated to be around a lakh, although there are no official estimates yet.
The corporation has issued the work orders for procuring two lakh microchips and 80 radio frequency identification stick readers to Exhilar Innovative Solutions Private Limited at Rs 5.19 crore.
Anti-rabies vaccinations are being administered free of cost for pet dogs in six corporation-run clinics at Thiru Vi Ka Nagar, Pulianthope, Lloyds colony, Nungambakkam, Kannamapet, and Meenambakkam since October 8.
