(a) The County directly or by contract must establish one or more clinics where County residents may have dogs or cats altered in a humane manner by a licensed veterinarian for a fee set by regulation. The County may contract for altering services by a licensed veterinarian at the veterinarian's own place of business. The fee may be:
(1) uniform or based on ability to pay; and
(2) waived or reduced for financial hardship.
(b) A person seeking to have an animal altered must certify that the person owns the animal or has authority to obtain the service. The person must agree in writing to hold the clinic and veterinarian harmless in any dispute about the person's authority.
(c) A person must retrieve the altered animal on the date specified by the clinic. The person must pay any additional charges for boarding the animal after that date. An animal not retrieved within 10 days after that date is abandoned. (1999 L.M.C., ch. 10, § 1.)