4.395 Licenses, Fees and Exceptions

4.395 Licenses, Fees and Exceptions.

(a) Every owner of a dog which has a set of permanent canine teeth or has attained the age of six (6) months, whichever event occurs first, shall immediately obtain a license for the dog. If the dog owner moves into the city and the owner’s dog does not have a current dog license from another city or county, the owner must obtain a license within five days of moving into the city.

(b) Licenses shall be valid for one, two, or three years from the date of issuance or until the sale or gift of the dog, whichever first occurs.

(c) No license shall be issued until a certificate of vaccination for rabies, valid for the term of the license is presented to the dog control authority or duly authorized issuer.

(d) Dog owners shall renew the dog license before it becomes delinquent for as long as they own the dog.

(e) A license tag issued to a dog owner shall be attached securely to a collar or harness on the dog for which it is issued. If a license tag is lost, the owner may obtain a duplicate license tag upon satisfactory proof of loss and payment of the required fee.

(2) A dog license fee shall be charged in the amount established by the city manager pursuant to section 2.020 of this code. The fee is due and payable upon the issuance of the license. A person who purchases a kennel license does not have to license the individual dogs as long as they live at the kennel. Also, a person who purchases a license for a commercial breeding kennel need not also obtain a commercial kennel or noncommercial kennel license, and a person who purchases a commercial kennel license need not obtain a noncommercial kennel license if they choose to operate such a kennel.

(a) No license fee shall be required for any dog owned by a person who uses the dog as a service animal. A license shall be issued for such dog upon proper proof of rabies vaccination and upon filing of an affidavit by the owner showing such dog to come within this exemption. Such affidavit shall be filed with the animal regulation authority.

(b) Only as part of a publicized city-wide campaign to license dogs owned by residents of the city and for a period not to exceed 30 days, periodically the city manager may waive all or part of the neutered dog license fee required in subsection (2) of this section.

(4) After application upon a form to be provided by the animal regulation authority, a permit may be issued to the licensed owner of a dog to use that dog as a watchdog. The fee for such permit shall be in addition to the individual dog license fee.

(5) If a dog is classified as a potentially dangerous dog, the owner shall obtain a separate license for the dog as well as a regular dog license. The owner shall obtain the potentially dangerous dog license within ten days of the time the dog is classified and annually thereafter. The animal regulation authority shall issue or renew a potentially dangerous dog license provided:

(a) The owner presents to the director sufficient evidence of compliance with the restrictions imposed by section 4.445; and

(b) The owner pays a potentially dangerous dog license fee in the amounts established by the city manager pursuant to section 2.020 of this code.

(6) If a dog owner has been fined or the dog owner’s dog has been classified or registered in another state, county, or city because the dog engaged in the behaviors described in section 4.435, the owner shall notify the animal regulation authority of such classification, registration, or fine at the time the owner licenses the dog. If the director classifies the dog pursuant to section 4.440, the owner shall meet the requirements of subsections (2) and (5) above except that the initial potentially dangerous dog license fee will be as established by the city manager pursuant to section 2.020 of this code for previously classified dogs.