Iqaluit issues warning to scofflaw pet owners
Registration deadline for dog and cat licences was Jan. 5
A loose dog enjoys a run through downtown Iqaluit, in a photo taken in 2013. Iqaluit’s municipal enforcement department says any loose, unlicenced dogs will earn their owners a minimum fine of $100. (FILE PHOTO)
Iqaluit pets might find themselves among the city’s most wanted list if their owners forget to register them for the New Year.
The city is reminding residents that the deadline for registering their pets for 2016 was Jan. 5.
“Come in and register your dogs. Come in and get your tags,” Chief municipal enforcement officer Kevin Sloboda told Nunatsiaq News Jan. 18.
Any unregistered animals brought in by municipal officers will take a bite out of their owner’s wallets.
The new fines are part of the “Responsible Pet Owner Bylaw” which city council passed last October.
According to the bylaw, unlicensed dogs caught “at-large” by the city will earn their owners a minimum $100 fine.
That’s on top of a $75 dollar impoundment fee, which will increase by $20 a day after the second full day of impoundment.
The city is asking tardy Iqalungmiut to be proactive and register their animals at the bylaw offices.
The current cost for neutered or spayed pooches is $35, or $55 for dogs that aren’t fixed.
Cat registration is $15, or $30 if they are not spayed or neutered.
Failure to get an animal neutered or spayed will cost owners a minimum $250 fine under the bylaw.
The city is reminding Iqaluit residents that all animals must be kept on a leash when in public.
Iqaluit’s new pet by-law, now over three months in practice, was designed to impose stricter penalties on non-compliant pet owners.
“It’s tougher fines, its makes the owner’s more responsible for their dogs,” Sloboda said of the new bylaw.
Owners could be fined hundreds of dollars if their animal is caught attacking or biting an individual.
And that fine could easily be in the thousands of dollars if the animal already has a history of attacks.
Owners can register their animals at the City of Iqaluit’s office at building 2425.
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