HomeMy WebLinkAboutCLD-008-08
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REPORT
CLERK'S DEPARTMENT
Meeting:
General Purpose and Administration Committee
February 25,2008 Resdu..+i.on *~Pt9- 180 -or,
Date:
Report #: CLD-008-08
File#:
By-law #: ~ Of!) ~- 0"35
Subject:
CLARINGTON ANIMAL SHELTER - MICROCHIP PROGRAM
RECOMMENDATIONS:
It is respectfully recommended that the General Purpose and Administration Committee
recommend to Council the following:
1. THAT Report CLD-008-08 be received;
2. THAT a microchip program for cats and dogs adopted through the Clarington Animal
Shelter be endorsed; and
3. THAT a by-law be passed to amend By-law 2006-227 to increase the adoption fees of
cats and dogs by $10.00 to cover the costs associated with the microchip program.
Reviewed bYU ~-= ~
Franklin Wu,
Chief Administrative Officer
PLB*AG
CORPORATION OF THE MUNICIPALITY OF CLARINGTON
40 TEMPERANCE STREET, BOW MANVILLE, ONTARIO L 1C 3A6 T 905-623-3379 F 905-623-6506
REPORT NO.: CLD-008-08
PAGE 2
BACKGROUND AND COMMENT
By-law 2006-227 requires all residents of the Municipality of Clarington to licence their dogs
and cats. One primary objective of the licensing program is to enable the Animal Services
Officers to reunite the stray animal with its family. All cats and dogs are required to wear their
licence tags at all times. Cat owners rarely keep identification on their pets so our ability to re-
unite them with their family is severely limited. We can often return pets home by telephone if
they are wearing a current licence which saves the owner the impound fine and a lot of worry.
In 2007 a total of 245 dogs and 428 cats were either brought into the Shelter or picked up by
an Animal Services Officer. Of these, only 161 dogs and 12 cats were retrieved by their
owners. These statistics are astounding and directly impact the animals' quality of life and our
Shelter operating budget.
Although staff is convinced that licensing of animals is effective, licensing alone is not a perfect
approach. We believe that microchipping our animals prior to adoption will assist our Officers
in improving our opportunity to reunite the animals with their owners.
A microchip program involves three components:
1. microchip - A small grain of rice-sized glass encapsulated computer chip with a unique
identification number and a miniature antenna. The microchip is implanted on the animal
under the skin.
2. scanner - A device which emits the proper radio signals to activate and "read" the
information contained on the chip. The microchip reflects a weak radio signal encoded with
that identification number when illuminated by the radio signal emitted by a compatible
scanner.
3. database - an information archive with the records that match the identification number
in the microchip to the owner's contact information.
Although typically microchips are implanted by a licenced veterinarian, the Veterinarians Act
does permit the Animal Services Officers to implant the microchips on our own animals:
"11.(1 )No person shall engage in the practice of veterinary medicine or hold himself, herself,
itself out as engaging in the practice of veterinary medicine unless the person is the owner of a
licence.
Exceptions
(2) Subsection (1) does not apply to prevent a person, .....
(b) from treating an animal if the person is the owner of the animal, is a
member of the household of the owner of the animal or is employed for general agricultural or
domestic work by the owner of the animal..."
CORPORATION OF THE MUNICIPALITY OF CLARINGTON
40 TEMPERANCE STREET, BOWMANVILLE, ONTARIO L 1 C 3A6 T 905-623-3379 F 905-623-6506
REPORT NO.: CLO-008-08
PAGE 3
The Oshawa Animal Shelter has confirmed that they do microchip their animals prior to
adoption. Where one of their animals is required to undergo a medical procedure, Oshawa's
contract vet implants the microchip on their behalf. Oshawa staff report that their program
works well and has not interfered with any of their operations or services.
The issue of microchip implantation for our sheltered animals was discussed with our Animal
Advisory Committee. Our veterinary member confirmed that the implantation of microchips
was a rather simple procedure and was confident that our Animal Services Officers would be
quite capable to perform the procedure. She further offered to demonstrate for them. Based
on the Oshawa protocol staff will approach our veterinarians and seek their cooperation in
assisting with the microchip implantation at the same time as an animal undergoes another
medical procedure in an effort to minimize stress.
Our Animal Services Officers do not anticipate that this program would unduly impact their
workload. In fact, they anticipate that over time the microchipping will reduce the amount of
time it takes them to "track down" the owners and thus reduce the length of time the animals
remain in our Shelter.
Related Costs
There are several organizations within North America which offer the microchip program
(including the microchips, scanners, and manage the database). The costs associated with
implementing a microchip program include the cost of the microchip, the cost of the scanner,
and the registration of the animal (both initial registration and any update amendments).
Adoption fees for cats and dogs are set out in Appendix A of By-law 2006-227. Costs per
adoption to implement this program are approximately $10.00.
Summary
Each year hundreds of animals make their way to our Shelter and because the pets are
unidentifiable our Officers are unable to re-unite these animals with their owners. The
microchip process is similar to a vaccination, the microchip remains just beneath the skin, and
most animals do not react when the microchip is implanted. Our Animal Services Officers are
well-trained and capable of performing the implant procedure. Given our deplorable statistics
in re-uniting our animals, staff recommend that Council endorse the microchip program and
approve an amendment to By-law 2006-227 to increase the adoption prices for cats and dogs
by $10.00 to cover the costs of the microchip program.
CORPORATION OF THE MUNICIPALITY OF CLARINGTON
40 TEMPERANCE STREET, BOWMANVILLE, ONTARIO L 1C 3A6 T 905-623-3379 F 905-623-6506