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Pet Ownership & Licensing plan and budget

2023-2026

Pet Ownership & Licensing provides citizen education on responsible pet ownership and regulates owners under the Responsible Pet Ownership Bylaw. Animal care services are offered to ensure the health and well-being of recovered animals until they can be reunited with their owners or adopted into new homes.

Our customers

  • Calgarians with lost animals
  • Calgarians reporting animal concerns
  • No-Cost spay and neuter services
  • Fair Entry Program participants
  • Safe-Keeping program participants seeking temporary care and housing for pets
  • Fire & Emergency Response
  • Calgary Police Service seeking assistance with animal related calls

Our partners

  • Calgary Humane Society
  • Alberta Animal Rescue Crew Society
  • Parachutes for Pets
  • Make Each One Wanted (MEOW) Foundation
  • University of Calgary Veterinary Medical Program
  • Other internal lines of service (Parks & Open Spaces; Police Services; Bylaw Education & Compliance)

Value to Calgarians


  • lost pets are successfully reunited with their owners
  • recovered animals are socialized and altered for adoption
  • no-cost spay and neuter program for low-income pet owners
  • community peace officers promote public safety by responding to animal complaints

What we deliver


  • Pet licensing services.
  • Respond to citizen concerns involving animal incidents or emergencies.
  • Community peace officers and volunteers promote Responsible Pet Ownership Bylaw compliance.
  • Shelter services ensure the well-being of recovered animals until they are reunited or adopted into new homes.
  • No-Cost spay and neuter services for stray animals and Fair Entry program participants.

Budget breakdown


service plan budget

Legend

Operating ($millions)
Capital ($millions)
View budget in the year of
service plan budget
Service line Breakdown
Pet Ownership & Licensing

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Service performance


Expected 2026 performance.

Number of pet licenses issued

2022 was 125K

2023 mid-year was 125K

Number of volunteer hours contributing to public awareness and animal socialization programs

2022 was 1.1K

Calgarians satisfied with the job The City is doing providing this service

2022 was 91%

Participants accessing the No-cost Spay and Neuter Program

2022 was 273

2023 mid-year was 133

Recovered pets successfully reunited with their families

2022 was 70%

2023 mid-year was 42%

What we've heard

Calgarians report a high level of satisfaction with the service, identifying prevention, responsiveness, and safety as key values. Engagement recognized that offering programs to increase education and awareness on responsible pet ownership was important to promote safety. The 2021 Fall Citizen Satisfaction report identified that:

  • 78 per cent of Calgarians indicated that the service is somewhat or very important.
  • 93 per cent of Calgarians are satisfied with the job Pet Ownership & Licensing is doing in providing for animal control and licensing services.
  • 87 per cent of Calgarians want more or the same investment in the service.
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What we're watching

Calgary’s demographics are becoming more complex and diverse, which will require long-term strategic shifts in how we connect with Calgarians and pet owners. We will continue to build awareness of the benefits and value of pet licensing in the interest of community safety and animal health and well-being. Changes to the Responsible Pet Ownership Bylaw will require effective engagement with communities and we will rely on volunteers to deliver education on initiatives including Livestock Emotional Support Animals and urban agriculture.
 
Our service continues to respond to Calgarians expecting fast and efficient access to virtual services. This will require increased employee training to support implementation of technological upgrades and modernization of service delivery. The Office of the Solicitor General mandated new training requirements for the Peace Officer Program, and we expect future legislative change to influence how we deliver services and structure our workforce.

Our initiatives


What we plan to do

Pet Ownership & Licensing will strive to be a pet and public safety leader by offering equitable access to education and programs. Communicating the value of pet licensing and modernizing our approach to service delivery will further promote compliance with the Responsible Pet Ownership Bylaw.

How we're going to get there

  • Promote responsible pet ownership practices through increased community outreach, advocacy and engagement
  • Enhance community safety by increasing collaboration with our partners to implement dog bite prevention and dog safety education to Calgarians.
  • Promote bylaw compliance and mitigate impacts to surrounding communities by delivering education and awareness to Calgarians on Livestock Emotional Support Animals and urban agriculture practices.
  • Expedite animal reunifications and increase compliance with the Responsible Pet Ownership Bylaw by communicating the value of pet licensing.
  • Improve responsiveness and access to virtual services by modernizing the technical infrastructure supporting the Animal Licensing Management System.

More initiatives

Most requested services