APRIL is pet registration time – and Kingston Council is reminding all cat and dog owners to ensure their pets comply.
Registering pets is the best way to ensure owners are reunited if their pets are lost or run away.
Over the past two years, all properly registered dogs collected by Kingston Council rangers have been successfully returned to their owners.
Kingston mayor Tamsin Bearsley has her family’s five-year-old maltese/shitzu cross, Roxy, registered each year.
“Roxy is a much-loved part of our family and the thought of losing her is heartbreaking,” Cr Bearsley said.
“I encourage all pet owners to have their animals registered and microchipped; that way, if they are ever lost, they can be identified and safely returned home.”
Victorian legislation requires every cat and dog three months and older be registered with their local council.
Animals being registered for the first time must be microchipped and desexed prior to registration.
Pet registration fees fund off-leash dog parks and dog exercise equipment, as well as providing services to remove wandering and aggressive dogs from the streets, and services to deal with nuisance problems like barking dogs, cat trespass and abandoned animals.
It pays for controlling dangerous, menacing and restricted breed dogs so they do not pose a threat to the community, monitors animal welfare standards in pet shops, kennels, catteries, breeding and training businesses, and education programs for the general community and for children in preschools and primary schools.
Pet registrations are due by Sunday 10 April. Registration renewals can be made online.
Details: visit kingston.vic.gov.au or call 1300 653 356.
First published in the Chelsea Mordialloc Mentone News – 6 April 2016