Cat owners will need to license their cats on an annual basis beginning next year as Bowden council has passed a newly updated animal control bylaw .
Cat owners will need to license their cats on an annual basis beginning next year as Bowden council has passed a newly updated animal control bylaw.
The updated bylaw, which received third reading at council’s April 8 meeting, replaces the town’s previous animal control bylaw that was more than a decade old with the aim of having policies that reflect more modern standards for the control of animals in the community.
The requirement to license cats on an annual basis comes into effect on Jan. 1, 2014, as some members of council felt it unfair to make owners pay a licensing fee for 2013 this late into the year.
The cost of an annual licence for cats under the new bylaw would be $30 for animals that are spayed or neutered and $40 for cats that are not.
Currently, cat owners can voluntarily obtain a one-time licence for free from the town.
Fines for most animal-related offences have also increased in the new bylaw.
The new fines come into effect immediately.
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