Petition calls on Kitchener City Council to make licensing cats mandatory
Posted May 8, 2024 01:54:51 PM.
Last Updated May 8, 2024 01:54:56 PM.
It’s not as out-there an idea as one might first think.
There are several municipalities in the immediate area that require cat owners to licence their feline. Guelph, Stratford, Hamilton and Toronto have a licensing by-law on the books.
The idea has popped up in the past but has failed to gain traction with past councils. The authors of this new petition are hoping their efforts will get noticed.
“We do have a big feral cat problem in the city,” Mark Kavanagh, petition author and Kitchener resident, told The Mike Farwell Show. “It’s (the petition) about trying to reduce the feral cat issue. So, we thought let’s try to implement licensing.”
Kavanagh would like to see council require cat owners to get a licence, similar to a dog tag. It would come with a microchip, so if the cat wanders away and is picked up by animal control, it can be quickly reunited with its owner.
Kavanugh believes that would free up resources at the Humane Society.
But Kitchener Ward 3 councillor Jason Deneault told The Mike Farwell Show the logistics of implementing a program like this could be more than intended.
“At the end of the day, we have to be more cognizant of what our resources are going to go towards and where that money is going to come from.”
He points out by-law officers are already quite busy and this would add another item to long list of duties. He is also concerned about added costs to residents who may simply choose to forgo the licensing requirement altogether.
At the end of the day, Deneault says the concern is valid and council is willing to listen to suggestions.
“But it comes down to what is possible and what is financially responsible to the taxpayers.”
