CHENNAI: Pet owners will face a fine of Rs 10,000 if they abandon their pet dogs or cats after registering them with the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC). In a resolution passed by the corporation’s monthly council on Friday, the civic body said the fine would apply to the owners who abandoned their microchipped pets from October 1.
The resolution noted that the fines would be collected by GCC veterinary officers, medical officers and sanitary officers through point of sale machines. If abandoned pet dogs are found on roads and public spaces and scanned using the microchip scanner, the identity of the owner will be traced from the details in the microchip and the owners will be fined, the resolution added.
GCC chief veterinary medical officer Dr J Kamal Hussian said they are planning to enforce the fines from next week. Random checks will be conducted at all public places to make sure all pets are registered. Besides, Rs 5,000 fine for unlicensed pet dogs and Rs 500 for unleashed pet dogs will continue, he added.
The GCC had mandated pet registration and microchipping last year to ensure that pet animals were vaccinated against rabies and to prevent abandonment. The civic body stated that from the day registrations began on October 3, 2025 till July 30, 2026, there had been 78,238 registrations, and emphasised that pet registration was mandatory.
Speaking to TNIE, RA Kirthana, founder of Hope for Critters, said that it was a welcome move and that it needed to be implemented effectively. When asked about concerns that the move may discourage owners from registering pets, Kirthana said, “Registration and microchipping also have to be continued and be made mandatory.”
Recently, animal rights activists had raised concerns that pet dog abandonment was increasing and that there was no space in shelters to accommodate them.
Speaking to TNIE, Shravan Krishnan, director of Besant Memorial Animal Dispensary, had said that pet dogs were being abandoned left, right and centre.
Kirthana further pointed out that a husky was abandoned on a road in Anna Nagar as recently as Thursday. It was unlicensed, she added.
