It's Time To License Your Dog (And Get Some Free Pet Supplies)

This story explains it well, but licensing your dog is the law in Ohio--and also happens to be the best way to assure your dog's safe return if he or she runs off:

http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20081201/NEWS01/812010323/0/NEWS02

Dec. 1 (today) is the first day to license your dog.

But this year, in order to increase the abysmal rate of people who actually have their dog license, the SPCA has partnered with Iams, who will provide free pet supplies to every pet owner who gets their license. The free supplies are valued at far more than the $13 license fee, so be sure to take advantage of this. We are also rolling out a much more aggressive marketing campaign, working with vets, retail stores, and even Cincinnati Waterworks (through their mailings), to get the word out.

As a budget matter, every person who legally licenses their dog (and only about 30 to 40% do), means cuts we don't have to make to our general fund budget. Because of the low percentage, we end up having to subsidize the dog warden services from our general fund by hundreds of thousands of dollars. Also, we decided to keep the license fee at $13, one of the lowest around, on the hope that more people would buy them instead.

So if you own a dog in Hamilton County, please purchase the license: it's a win-win-win-win. It's good for your dog's safe return. You get a greater value in Iam's merchandise than the cost of the license. It's the law (so you won't be fined later). And it helps our County's budget.

For more information on how to get your dog license and take advantage of the Iams offer, go to: http://www.spcacincinnati.org/pages/default2.asp?active_page_id=168.

UPDATE: Here's a radio interview I did on the issue: http://www.700wlw.com/cc-common/podcast/single_podcast.html?podcast=scott_sloan.xml.