The City of Ames is considering a required pet licensing program to help fund its local animal shelter.
City staff brought a proposal to the Ames City Council on Tuesday, Oct. 28 that would require cat and dog owners to license their pets annually.
Out of the 15 largest cities in Iowa by population, Ames is one of only two cities that doesn’t have a pet licensing program, Ames Police Chief Geoff Huff said. Ames is also Iowa’s only public university community that doesn’t have a program.
“This puts our community behind in responsible pet ownership and public safety standards,” Huff said. “The proposed program offers a cost-effective, community enhancing solution with wide-reaching benefits for our customers, their pets and our Animal Control and Shelter operation.”
License fees would be used to support the Ames Animal Shelter and Animal Control services, which are currently funded primarily through property taxes.
The Ames Animal Shelter plans to move into into a larger facility at 2715 Dayton Ave., which will have additional operating costs, Huff said. Licensing fees may help offset those costs.
Revenue could shift more of the pet-related enforcement expenses to pet owners rather than all property taxpayers, according to city documents.
How many cats and dogs are in Ames homes?
The city estimates there are about 16,000 dogs and 11,000 cats living in Ames households.
According to calculations from the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA), Ames has just over 24,600 households. About 11,000 of the households have one or more dogs living there and about 6,000 have at least one cat.
The animal shelter’s 2024 intake included 582 cats and 303 dogs.
Ames eyes potential benefits of pet licensing program
A pet license can be traced 24 hours a day at any point in the year by the Ames Police Department, Huff said, allowing lost pets to be reunited with their owners faster.
Licensed pets are also held longer before being placed up for adoption at the shelter, increasing their chances to be reunited with owners.
A license ensures that dogs and cats are vaccinated against rabies. Licensed pet owners would receive a reminder to re-vaccinate their pet before the vaccine’s expiration date.
The license program will hopefully discourage residents to own more pets than someone is able to reasonably care for, Huff said.
“Every single year, sometimes multiple times a year, we find animals living in really terrible conditions that should not exist,” Huff said. “We believe the program will help us with some of those cases.”
What would a pet license cost?
If approved, pet license fees spayed and neutered pets would cost $12 per year, and $24 per year for unaltered pets. City staff believes a $1 per month cost is fair. The unaltered fee was doubled as an incentive for residents to spay or neuter their cats and dogs to help control their population.
There will also be a $10 fee for replacement tags.
The pet licensig fees are expected to generate a little more than $430,000 of annual revenue, according to city documents. Since there is no intent to proactively enforce the program, the actual revenue is likely to be much lower, Huff said.
How would the Ames pet licensing program be enforced?
The license requirement would be incorporated into all adoptions from the shelter. Unlicensed animals in the shelter’s custody must obtain a license before the animal is released.
City staff would not proactively enforce the program, Huff said, encouraging compliance “through education and not intrusion.”
A citation will cost $50 for a first offense and $100 for a second offense, plus court costs of $95, according to city documents.
Staff will transport a lost, licensed pet back to their owner once at no charge.
What will the Ames pet licensing program cost the city?
The pet licensing program would cost the city a little over $18,000 in the first year.
According to city documents, the initial start-up fee would be $11,000. An annual service fee and an initial order of 10,000 pet license tags would cost around $3,800 and $3,400, respectively.
Those costs do not include any staff time involved with setting up and managing the program.
Ames pet owners voice opposition to licensing program
Several Ames residents spoke to the council at their Oct. 28 meeting.
Breyer Ott, secretary of the Cyclone Country Kennel Club of Ames, said the club’s members were concerned about the price gap between intact animals compared to spayed or neutered animals.
“The breeders in our kennel club are those that show their dogs, prove their dogs are to the breed standard, complete all the health testing, microchip their puppies before they leave,” Ott said. “They are the reputable breeders, and there’s a large concern on why they are incurring the cost of reunification when the pets don’t have to be microchipped.”
Ott wondered if it would be better for the city to hold more microchip clinics or require a microchip to go with the license.
Jz Conrad, owner of cat business Sweet Whiskers, believes pet licensing programs are inefficient with “horrendous compliance rates.”
“They drive citizens to hide their pets,” Conrad said. “It actually increases he amount of surrendering (of animals), which is exactly opposite of what we’re trying to do here.”
The council decided in a 4-2 vote to consider the program again at a later time, though an exact date was not specified.
Celia Brocker is a government, crime, political and education reporter for the Ames Tribune. She can be reached at CBrocker@gannett.com
This article originally appeared on Ames Tribune: Ames considers adopting a pet licensing program. What you need to know
Reporting by Celia Brocker, Ames Tribune / Ames Tribune
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