This action identifies methods by which a municipality may enhance its ability to meet its legal and ethical responsibilities for the care and management of animals in its community, generate funds, and reduce costs, which will help to sustain animal welfare programs without increasing the financial burden on taxpayers. The generation of increased funds will be through higher compliance with licensing, adoption fees, grants, and where necessary, fees for noncompliance with licensing requirements. Additionally, it will help the community to understand issues relating to the health and welfare of animals. 

Why is it important? 

Animals are an intimate part of any community. There are approximately 8.9 million people in New Jersey, living in 3.5 million households with 2.7 residents per household. (2013 US Gov. Census) 

According to the NJ Department of Health, 56% or over 2 million households have at least 1 domestic animal. This impacts all aspects of a community’s structure, including: rabies control, other diseases, impact of animals on the ecology, car accidents, neighborhood nuisance calls, animal population growth, animal cruelty, rescuing animals in fires, weather events, etc. Without this enhanced program, a municipality is severely limiting itself in addressing these issues. Increased compliance with licensing could generate thousands of dollars for each municipality, depending on its size, and millions statewide. These enhanced funding revenues can sustain animal welfare programs and protect the public from zoonotic disease (diseases transmitted from animals to humans, such as rabies). Many of these concepts have proven successful in Calgary Canada and can be easily adopted by New Jersey municipalities. In Calgary, the outcome of these measures was that the number of stray dogs and cats entering the shelters was reduced, because ACOs now were able to return more animals to their owners. This had a two-fold effect. With a reduction in animals filling up cages, the shelter could focus more on community outreach programs, quality re-homing of those animals that still were impounded, and achieve a major reduction in the euthanasia rate. In addition, ACOs could spend more time addressing nuisance and neglect cases, and become more community based in their approach. In Calgary, the result was that public opinion became positive towards Animal Control, and Animal Control Officers became viewed as true public servants.