(1) Dogs Licensed. No one shall have any dog, except one that is kept in a state-licensed kennel, unless he has obtained a license for such dog and has paid an annual license fee as follows:
For each unsterilized dog. . . . . $40
For each sterilized dog. . . . . $16
(2) Permanent Licenses Grandfathered. Owners shall obtain an annual license for dogs for which a permanent license has previously been issued, but no fee shall be required. Such license shall be obtained no more than three (3) months after the next anniversary of the issuance of the permanent license following the effective date of the ordinance adding this subsection.
(3) Senior Citizen, Guide Dog and Government Discounts. Any person over sixty-five (65) years of age who licenses any dog shall receive a discount in the licensing fee of fifty percent (50%). All licensing fees for guide dogs for the blind, or guide dogs for any other handicapped person or for government-owned dogs used for law enforcement shall be waived. Permanent licenses shall be granted for guide dogs for the blind, guide dogs for any other handicapped person or for government-owned dogs used for law enforcement. All other licensing provisions shall apply. 11
(4) Vaccination Required. All dogs and cats must be vaccinated for rabies. Verification of vaccination will be recognized only upon the presentation of a vaccination certificate signed by a veterinarian or veterinary hospital.
(5) Tags Required. A license tag and receipt shall be furnished by the Department of Licenses and Inspections for each dog licensed pursuant to this Section. A rabies vaccination tag or certificate shall be furnished by the veterinarian or veterinary hospital for each vaccinated dog or cat. Such vaccination tag shall indicate the year or years for which the vaccination is valid and the name of the administering veterinarian or veterinary hospital. A dog's license must be displayed on its collar at all times except during participation in a dog show.
(6) Authorization to Dispense and Accept License Applications. Application for any dog license shall be made to the Animal Control Agency. Every veterinarian, veterinary hospital, animal shelter, animal retailer, boarding kennel, and groomer shall act as a dog licensing agent for the Animal Control Agency, under such regulations as the Agency shall develop. Dog licensing agents may charge a processing fee of no more than two dollars ($2.00) per license application taken.
(7) Time of Licensing.
(a) Licensing Upon Purchase or Adoption. A person obtaining a dog that must be licensed under this Section from an animal retailer or animal shelter shall submit an application and the applicable fee for such license to a dog licensing agent or the Animal Control Agency as a condition of obtaining the dog. No animal retailer or animal shelter shall release a dog to a person unless such person has submitted a license application and applicable fee.
(b) Licensing Upon Provision of Services. Whenever a veterinarian, veterinary hospital, boarding kennel, or groomer provides services for a dog that must be licensed under this Section, such service provider shall verify that the dog is licensed. A current license tag issued for the dog under subsection 10-103(5) or, if available, a record from a City-maintained database of dog licenses, shall constitute proof that the dog is licensed. If the owner does not produce proof that the dog is licensed or that the owner has applied to the Animal Control Agency for a license, the service provider shall take a license application and collect the license fee from the owner under subsection 10-103(6). If the owner refuses to license the dog, the service provider shall issue a notice to the owner of the City's dog licensing requirements, the owner shall sign the notice, and the service provider shall maintain the signed notice on file for two years. The service provider shall notify the Animal Control Agency within five (5) days of providing services that such dog is not licensed. Such notice shall include the owner's name and address.
(c) With respect to a dog obtained by a City resident from a private owner or from an animal retailer or animal shelter outside the City, application for a license must be made within thirty (30) days after obtaining the dog, or within thirty (30) days of bringing the dog into Philadelphia. A non-resident shall license any dog kept in the City by such non-resident for more than 60 days.
(d) The Animal Control Agency may authorize any non-profit entity that is a dog licensing agent under subsection 10-103(6) to do, at such times and places as the Animal Control Agency may designate, any of the following:
(.2) Provide veterinary services to dogs without verifying that such dogs are licensed, notwithstanding subsection 10-103(7)(b).
(8) Maximum Number of Dogs and Cats Allowed. 12 Except in connection with the operation of a registered kennel, or unless the Animal Control Agency has granted a waiver pursuant to such regulations as it may establish, no more than twelve (12) adult dogs or cats combined, of which no more than two (2) dogs and two (2) cats may be unsterilized, may be kept—
(a) on a parcel of land on which only one residential dwelling unit is located; or
(b) in any residential dwelling unit on a parcel of land on which multiple residential dwelling units are located.
Notes
| 10 | Added, 1986 Ordinances, p. 840; amended, 1992 Ordinances, p. 550; amended, Bill No. 110210-A (approved May 25, 2011). |
| 11 | Amended, Bill No. 140052 (approved June 4, 2014). |
| 12 | Amended, Bill No. 120049 (approved June 27, 2012). |