Slow-to-pay dog owners need to act

SAY FLEAS: It is not compulsory but pet owners who supply a photo qualify for a $25 discount off the Ruapehu District Council registration fee. PHOTO/FILE A-BN121214SPRC05

Fewer Waimarino people are registering their dogs.

The Ruapehu District Council is concerned at the slow rate of registrations, with the total number down by almost 30 per cent on the same time last year.

Council regulation manager Steve Costelloe said that at this time last year 67 per cent of all dogs on its database had been re-registered, while this year it was only 40 per cent.

"This is despite council having introduced a new dog-registration fee structure that provides an even greater incentive for dog owners to pay on time and meet other legal and good dog-owner obligations," Mr Costelloe said.

"Dog owners only have until the end of the month to take advantage of these discounts. Anyone registering their dog after 1 August will be paying more."

The new registration-fee model includes a new hunting-dog classification developed with the Department of Conservation which applies to pig, goat and deer-hunting dogs used on the conservation estate.

This time the council has also asked owners to supply a photo of their dog as part of registration. This will help ensure dogs are properly classified and in identifying lost, stolen and wandering dogs.

It is not compulsory, but pet owners who provide a photo qualify for a $25 discount off the registration fee.

Mr Costelloe said the new fee model was designed to reward prompt payment, rather than penalise for non-compliance.

"Unfortunately, despite the financial incentives offered for on-time payment there are always a number of dog owners who need to be chased up by council."

It was a "surprise" so many dog owners were tardy, given the new incentives.

Mr Costelloe said the council would urge all dog owners who had not yet registered their dog for the coming 2015/16 registration year to do so before July 31, when the fee discounts expired.