Is Your Dog Licensed and Vaccinated?

World Rabies Day was last Friday, and Pasadena Humane Society & SPCA is reminding people to keep vaccinations current and encouraging them to come to one of their upcoming low-cost vaccine clinics.

Licensing dogs, as well as keeping current vaccinations, can help prevent the spread of this serious and highly contagious disease, according to a Pasadena Humane Society press release.

The non-profit points out that the State of California mandates dogs be licensed, those licenses must be renewed annually and dogs must be current with their rabies vaccination. The small fee is decided by each city and may be lower if a dog is spayed or neutered. This mandated dog license program developed as a method of tracking rabies. Other benefits of licensing include an easy way of identifying lost animals, and the financial help that some fees bring to animal care programs.

“Licensing your dog and keeping him or her current on their vaccines is a sure way to prevent the spread of rabies,” Ricky Whitman, spokesperson for the Pasadena Humane Society & SPCA, said in a prepared statement. “Many people overlook the benefits of licensing your dog.”

Rabies is a viral disease that affects the central nervous system. It is found in raccoons, bats and other mammals in our area and commonly spread by an infected animal's bite. If an unvaccinated dog were bitten by a rabid bat, the dog could easily develop the disease and infect other dogs and humans.

The Pasadena Humane Society & SPCA facilitates licensing services for Arcadia, La Cañada Flintridge, San Marino and Sierra Madre, and South Pasadena.

The agency’s next public low-cost vaccine clinic, which offers the rabies vaccine for dogs and cats for $6, is scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 10 from 6-7:30 p.m. All members of the public are welcome.

More information on World Rabies Day can be found at http://www.worldrabiesday.org. For more information about dog licensing and the public low cost vaccine clinic, visit: www.pasadenahumane.org.