Panel to look at reviving pet licenses in Clark County

Adrienne Packer

Wednesday, June 21, 2000 | 10:50 a.m.

An animal advisory committee was directed Tuesday to look into reinstating a pet-licensing program that would help fund a satellite pet shelter in northeast Clark County.

Dewey Animal Care Center, which has a contract to provide animal shelter services for Clark County through 2005, proposed charging $10 to license spayed or neutered pets and $25 for unsterilized pets to fund the shelter and renovate its existing facility.

Dr. Joseph Freer, who runs the Dewey center, said $790,000 a year could be collected if 20 percent of the population's pets are licensed during the first two years of the program. The money generated from the first two years would cover construction costs of the new shelter.

If after the first two years 50 percent of the community's pets are licensed, the county will receive $7 for each license issued and the remaining amount would provide $1,067,500 toward sheltering costs, including new kennels at the Dewey center.

While the Clark County Commission supported the idea of a satellite animal shelter, some board members were concerned about the licensing costs and process.

"We live in an urban area with a large population of low-income people," said Clark County Commissioner Myrna Williams. "People in most cases are looking to the animal shelter to adopt an animal for companionship."

Most of the discussion Tuesday centered around vaccination records and whether veterinarians have client confidentiality rights.

Two years ago, Clark County implemented a rabies database program that required veterinarians to submit their clients' vaccination records which include the type of animal and the pet owner's name and address.

Under Freer's plan, he would take hold of those records to keep track of which animals are in compliance with the licencing law.

Commissioner Lance Malone suggested that if Freer possessed the records, he would hold an unfair advantage over his peers. After all, Malone said, Freer's Dewey center is a for-profit business.

"He could say, 'Your pet needs a rabies shot, come to my clinic,' " Malone said. "He could do that at his nonprofit company so this can be seen as a conflict of interest."

A collection of animal advocates appeared before the board and explained the dire need for a second shelter. They said the number of pets reunited with their owners would increase from 12 percent to 35 percent. And the number of adoptions would increase by 50 percent.