By Kate Reardon
Herald Writer
LAKE STEVENS — Allowing your pets out of the house without proper identification can lead to devastating consequences.
It can cost taxpayers money, and your pet its life.
The city council hopes to change that with a proposal that would require residents to license cats as well as dogs, and require those who have not licensed their dogs to do so. Only about one in 10 dogs is licensed at present, according to Lake Stevens police.
For the first few months of the new year, the city might even allow pet owners to license their animals for free, said Dave O’Leary, city administrator.
With licenses, wandering animals can be picked up and dropped off at their homes, said Heather Coleman, police administrative supervisor.
The city council could make a decision as early as Monday. The change would mean fees of $4 or $8 annually per pet, or $20 for a lifetime license.
Right now, owners are not required to license cats. Licenses are required for dogs, but only about 225 dogs have been registered, Coleman said.
"I can guarantee there’s about 10 times that many dogs in town," she said.
Animals captured by the city are held for a short time by Lake Stevens police, and the unclaimed ones are sent to the Everett Animal Shelter. In 2000, 110 pets from Lake Stevens were taken to the Everett shelter. Out of those, 36 were returned to their owners. The other 74 were euthanized or adopted out at a cost to the city of $1,110, Coleman said.
"It’s very expensive for us to take them to the shelter," she said, adding you have to count the expense plus the officer’s time to take the animal in.
And there’s a cat problem out there, too.
Cats leave little presents in people’s yards, mark cars with paw prints, scratch at window screens and have unwanted babies during the spring, Coleman said.
"With licensing, we can track the cat back to the owner," she said. "It’s definitely a benefit for the cat owner. I don’t know of anyone who wouldn’t want their pet back."
Coleman said licenses also will save money.
"It’s going to save taxpayer dollars if we get those cats and dogs licensed," she said. "We are spending money on owned pets because we don’t know who owns them."
And as far as the free licensing period, Coleman said, "It would be a shame if everybody didn’t take advantage of it."
You can call Herald Writer Kate Reardon at 425-339-3455 or send e-mail to reardon@heraldnet.com.
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