Hutt dogs get lifetime tag

Nicholas Boyack Reporter from Community News

Plastic dog tags are set to become a thing of the past in Lower Hutt, with the introduction of the One Tag for dog registrations.
The One Tag is a metal tag designed to last a dog's lifetime. Dog owners will still need to pay their annual registration fees, but they can keep using the same tag as long as they live in their council's jurisdiction.
Hutt City Mayor Campbell Barry says the One Tag initiative is being introduced to reduce the amount of plastic waste going to landfills.
Council infrastructure and regulatory committee Deborah Hislop said th council is seeing an increasing number of complaints from customers about sending them a piece of plastic each year which can't be recycled.
"Environmental sustainability is really important to our community, so our systems and processes need to reflect that. We're increasingly moving towards online transactions, so once the One Tags have been sent out this year, we'll be creating less paper waste too."
The One Tag is lightweight yet durable and comes in two sizes – 25mm for small dogs and 35mm for larger dogs. The back of the tag is blank so owners can get it engraved with their dog's name or their contact details if they wish.
Under the Dog Control Act 1996, all dogs are legally required to be registered by the age of three months. Registration is due by July 31 of each year and owners of unregistered dogs may be charged an infringement fee of $300.
Animal Control Officers can access registration records remotely when they are out on patrol to check whether a dog is currently registered.