Pasay City tightens rule on pet registration
MANILA, Philippines – For pet owners in Pasay City, it’s a dog’s life.
A few months after city residents growled at City Hall for exacting tax from owners of dogs and bicycles, here comes another ordinance requiring them to pay for the registration of and administration of the anti-rabies to their pets.
Under the Pasay City Veterinary Code of 2012, which was signed into law by Pasay Mayor Antonino Calixto Jr. on Sept 21, 2012, it would be unlawful for any person to own or keep a pet without having it registered with the City Veterinary Office.
The city government’s top reason is to “control and prevent (the spread) of animal diseases, particularly rabies,” according to the 21-page copy of the ordinance obtained by the Philippine Daily Inquirer.
Residents had to do the necessary paper work in registering cats and dogs which includes duly accomplished form, a certificate of residency coming from the barangay (village), two 2×2 photos of the owner and full-body and side photos of the pet.
Pet owners will be asked to pay P100 for the registration fee and the pet tag apart from proof that the pet had received anti-rabies vaccine during the last six months.
Without the proof, the city veterinarian would have to administer the vaccine to the animal, according to the ordinance.
Pet owners in the city also have to renew the registration and pay P50 every year.
“If the registrant failed to present a proof of the pet vaccination in the previous year, a fine of P100 shall be charged in addition to the renewal fee,” the ordinance said.
In enforcing this new policy, the city government would impose a fine of P1,000 for those who are found keeping an unregistered pet for the first offense, and P1, 500 for the second.
For the third offense, the erring pet owner would have to pay P2, 000 or suffer 30 days of imprisonment.
The approval of the ordinance came about despite the fact that sometime in June residents grumbled about the notice issued by City Treasurer Manuel Leycano Jr. reminding Pasay residents about a provision in the city’s tax code imposing taxes for owning dogs and bicycles.
The city treasurer was then citing the city’s 1999 tax code which imposes license fee on owners of dogs and bikes. The growing complaints prompted the city council to remove those provisions from the tax code through an amendment on June 24, 2012.
But the 2012 and 1999 ordinances were not alike, as pointed out by the 2012 City Veterinary Code proponent Pinky Lyn Francisco, a Pasay city councilor.
“We are not just taxing the residents. We are offering them services,” she said in an interview.
The fees to be collected from pet owners would be used for the purchase of anti-rabies vaccine shots and the expenses to be incurred in the registered pet’s annual checkup, Francisco said. “The city government would not be getting revenues from this,” she said.
“What we want is to have all pet dogs and cats in the city identified and recorded to promote a sense of responsibility among pet owners,” she said. “For example, if a dog goes missing and starts wandering in the streets, the city veterinary office can easily find and identify it.”
But Francisco noted that the city council is open for revisions and would consider the suggestions from the public.
City veterinarian Rolando Bernasor said, the veterinary code in its entirety creates stricter policies concerning the care, control and custody of animals, including regulations for livestock, poultry and aqua businesses. It would take into effect after the implementing guidelines have been laid down.
To implement the clause on pet registration, the city government still needs to find a spot within the city to serve as a city dog pound.
