Before any Tay Township resident can turn the air blue by saying ‘Doggonit’, the municipality is hoping dog owners register their pets to keep everyone safe from the threat of rabies, and to keep count of higher-than-recorded numbers of the pets.
At a recent committee of the whole meeting, two reports regarding dogs were presented by municipal law enforcement staff: dog licensing through online payments; and an accompanying canine control bylaw for noise, behaviour, dogs at large, and potential dangers.
Tay Township requires all dog owners to license their dogs annually through purchasing dog tags, but until now an online option hadn’t been available.
Staff noted that utilizing online purchasing through the Square software platform would result in a loss in revenue through credit card processing fees and postage fees to mail the tags out, at approximately $6.60 for every $100 in revenue received.
“The person purchasing the tag would have the ability to upload (the required) proof of rabies through the online system, or they would email it to us directly,” said Jocelyn Belcourt, municipal law enforcement services manager. “We would not be issuing the tag until we receive proof of rabies.”
Council members were interested in enforcement of residents without dog licences, as the February monthly activity report for municipal law enforcement noted that just 144 dog tags were sold last month, with 174 year-to-date. Currently, 255 dogs were listed as registered for the 2025 to 2027 span; however, the new bylaw would limit registrations to just one year for simplification purposes.
Coun. Sandy Talbot remarked that the township had well over 300 dogs, with Gerard LaChapelle adding that just a drive around could find upward of 60 people walking their dogs.
“I go way back, and I remember we had over a thousand dogs registered,” said LaChapelle. “The air gets pretty blue with (people cursing about) barking dogs.”
LaChapelle asked if the township had “the ability without infringing on their rights to pull over and ask to see their dog tags? That’s a good way to catch these people. You go down the ball field at Sunset Park, you’ll see one owner who’ll have four dogs in there and they’re all the same type of dog.”
Belcourt replied that staff had been proactively calling residents who had purchased dog tags in previous years to encourage renewal, adding that having Square devices would allow for transactions door-to-door or at township events, provided proof of rabies were provided when making the purchase.
Deputy Mayor Barry Norris recalled a time when 1,400 dogs were registered in the township’s history.
“(Making) sure the animals are vaccinated for rabies, that’s my main concern,” said Norris. “And it’s not a tax grab here; this is for the protection of not only the dog, but it’s also the people.”
When asked what the cost of a resident paying for a licence would be as compared to a fine, Belcourt replied that a seven-day notice would be given to dog owners taking the risk before a charge was laid.
“It is a $180 fine if you do not license your dog; it would make sense to pay the $20 (pre-March) or $30 fee (after March 1st) depending on when you’re purchasing your tag to avoid that potential $180 fine if you choose not to license,” said Belcourt.
The municipal law enforcement reports regarding dog licensing and canine control can be found in the agenda page on the Tay Township website.
Tay council meets for committee of the whole meetings every second Wednesday of the month, and regular council meetings every fourth Wednesday of the month. Archives and livestreams of council meetings are available through the Tay Township YouTube channel.