During the month of December, the City of Los Alamitos will waive the $30.00 late penalty for dog owners who are delinquent in renewing their dog’s license. This amnesty period was established to gain more compliance with the Los Alamitos Municipal Code requirement for dogs to be licensed. With consideration to the economic hardships many community members are experiencing, the amnesty program provides an incentive for dog owners to license their dogs. For the waiver to be granted, dog owners must request the waiver when submitting payment for their license.
Animal control officials estimate that there may be as many as 1,500 unlicensed dogs in the City of Los Alamitos. Getting a dog licensed is an important part of responsible pet ownership because it enhances public safety as well as the safety of the pet. Licensing provides a mechanism to ensure that dogs have current rabies vaccinations and is the best insurance for having a pet returned to its owner if it becomes lost. The annual fee to license a neutered dog in Los Alamitos is $20, $10 for senior citizens.
The amnesty period is scheduled for December 1 – 31, 2010. In January, animal control officers will begin intensive neighborhood canvassing to locate unlicensed dogs in Los Alamitos. At that time, owners of unlicensed dogs may be subject to a citation in addition to the $30 late penalty. For the first offense, citation fines are $100 for no rabies vaccination and $50 for no current license. To avoid these penalties, residents with unlicensed dogs are encouraged to participate in the waiver program by contacting Long Beach Animal Care Services to request the one-time waivers.
For more information about the December Amnesty Program in Los Alamitos, call Animal Control (Long Beach Animal Care Services) at (562)570-PETS or visit www.longbeach.gov/acs.
Submitted by:
Cassandra Palmer, Support Services Manager
562-431-2255, x410
Read more about the program here.