Free pet registration now available in Naperville

Getting a pet license in Naperville now is free, and so is the first citation for letting a dog run at large or otherwise violating the city's animal code.

The city council made the changes as members updated animal control fees, which had remained constant since 1988.

The changes also increased the fees for impoundment or boarding an animal at the city facility at 1340 Aurora Ave.

By eliminating the $4 or $8 pet license fee, council members said they aim to increase the number of people who register their animals and receive a pet tag from the city. Joanne Aul, animal control supervisor, said this will help reunite lost pets with owners, decrease the number of pets impounded in the city shelter, determine whether an animal is a stray and inform first responders when there is an animal in a home.

Increasing boarding and impoundment fees was designed to cover the city's animal control costs.

It now will cost $20 a day to board an animal, up from the previous fee of $6. Impoundment will cost $25, up from $15. But the first time a pet owner is cited for violating the animal code in a given year, no fine will be charged.

Council member Paul Hinterlong encouraged his counterparts to eliminate the fine for first-time pet offenses, saying sometimes animals escape by accident, and pet owners shouldn't be punished unless it happens again.

"Sometimes a gate is left open or a leash breaks," Hinterlong said. "If that happens, that's going to be a costly day for those people for a mistake."

For the second offense in a year, the fine will be $50. The fine rises to $75 for the third offense and $150 for the fourth and all other offenses within a year.