Doggone it - dog registrations are due. Shawn McAvinue spots the difference in registration costs across the South.
The price of registering a pet dog varies in the South and the annual cost is a bone of contention for some owners.
Dog owner Rebecca Milne, of Dunedin, said she had just paid $96 to register her German shepherd Ebony for a year with Dunedin City Council.
"It is a bit of money; it mounts up. I pay because I have to pay it. I'd love it to be cheaper.''
She would prefer to pay $30 to register her dog with the Southland District Council. "It's a huge difference.''
She knew dog owners in Dunedin could apply for a discounted registration by applying for selected owner status in Dunedin.
However, to qualify an owner must have a fenced property. Her yard was not fenced and when no-one was home, Ebony was chained up, so she would not qualify for the discount.
Dog owner Paul Buckner, of Dunedin, said he was happy with paying $96 to register his Staffordshire bull cross Makka with the Dunedin City Council.
"I'm comfortable with it, because it has got to be controlled.''
If the fee was too low it would "lower the entry point'' to dog ownership.
"You can have less-responsible people owning dogs, so if there is a cost to owning a dog it hopefully reflects a higher [level of] responsibility.''
Registration fees
Dunedin City Council environmental health and animal services manager Ros MacGill said she believe Dunedin dog owners received a good service for their dog registration fee.
Dog owners could apply for selected owner status to reduce their annual registration fee by nearly 44%.
"To qualify for this discount, an owner must prove they are responsible and meet criteria including having a fenced property and a clean dog complaints record for the past two years.''
Southland District Council environmental health manager Michael Sarfaiti said that council's dog registration fees were among the lowest in New Zealand.
"We operate a 24-hour service and have effective responses for all dog-related matters, such as barking, wandering or aggression incidents.''
Clutha District Council planning and regulatory group manager David Campbell said value for money was a perception of the customer.
"We can say that we are favourably comparable to other councils regarding fees.''
Central Otago District Council planning and environment manager Louise Van der Voort said dog owners got good value for money in Central Otago.
Dog control activity was funded 100% from dog registration fees and did not affect rates.
"So ratepayers also get good value, as they benefit from dog control and enforcement which contributes to a safer environment, at no cost to them.''
Queenstown Lakes District Council regulatory manager Lee Webster said the council had set the registration fees to recover 70% of these costs from dog owners and 30% from rates.
The fees enabled the council to undertake educational activities such as dog awareness training in schools, dog training classes with animal behaviourists for dog owners, the free provision of dog barking collars and $10 microchipping.
Gore District Council events and promotions co-ordinator Emma Carle she believed dog owners in the Gore district got value for money for their registration fees.
"We engage with the owners of problem dogs who we come in contact with and earlier this year offered a dog behaviour workshop in conjunction with the other Southland councils and the Southland Institute of Technology.''
Waitaki District Council enforcement officer Tristan Hope said that council worked hard to ensure the service it provided presented good value for money and it was always looking at options to help encourage responsible dog ownership.
Invercargill City Council staff did not respond to questions.
