Pune: PMC to introduce online facility to register pet dogs

It charges Rs 500 per dog. If any citizen files a complaint against pet dogs and if they are found to be not licensed, PMC can register an offense against the pet owner.

Pet owners have to apply for a pet license every year by submitting a copy of the certificate of the Rabies vaccine administered to the animal, residential address, photo of animal, property tax payment receipt and a no objection certificate of the housing society.

The pet owners also have to submit an affidavit stating that the dog will not be released in an open space, other than that owned by the pet owner, and public places like the road, the animal would not hurt anyone and its face would be covered with a net mask and the dog will not be taken out in public places or roads for defecating in the open.

“The process of issuing licenses to pet animals, including dogs, used to be done manually at the ward office level. It was a time-consuming process so not many pet owners applied for license certificates,” said Sarika Punde, Veterinary superintendent of PMC.

She said there are around one lakh pet dogs in the city but only 5,000 license certificates were issued in the current year.

“The PMC, to encourage all pet owners to take mandatory license certificates for pet dogs, have decided to implement the process through an online medium. A software system has been prepared for it by the civic body’s Information Technology department. The system would be opened for public use in the next two months,” she said.

Punde said that the online facility for license certificates for pets would be started for pet dogs in the beginning and later extended for other pet animals. “People own various breeds of dogs but fail to take the license certificates. We should have discipline in handling pet dogs to maintain hygienic conditions and safety of citizens,” she said.