Blair treasurer implores residents to buy dog licenses
Enforcement efforts may see rise in 2025 due to hiring of 10 new dog wardens
HOLLIDAYSBURG — Blair County Treasurer James Carothers is urging local residents to buy dog licenses in light of what could be a year of greater enforcement efforts.
The state, after increasing dog license fees in early 2024, reported using the fee revenue to hire 10 new dog wardens and to continue ongoing efforts to fill vacant warden positions.
“With more dog wardens, the state will be in a position to enforce things better,” Carothers said Tuesday in his Courthouse office, where annual and lifetime dog licenses are for sale to those who live inside the county but outside Altoona, which sells its own license.
The cost is $8.70 for an annual license and $52.70 for a lifetime license, with discounts available for senior citizens at least 65 years old and for those with disabilities.
State Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding, in a recent announcement encouraging dog owners to buy 2025 licenses, which became valid on Jan. 1, spoke of efforts the state is making to hire more wardens. That announcement also reported that the state took in $623,000 more in dog license revenue between Dec. 1, 2023, and Nov. 29, 2024.
To encourage the purchase of 2025 licenses, Redding referred to the price of a license as less expensive than the cost of having an unlicensed dog. Those who fail to license their dogs, Redding said, face fines of up to $500 for each dog, plus court fees.
Carothers also said Tuesday that as in prior years, he again distributed dog licenses to local retailers for sale during their business hours.
They include:
– Central Pennsylvania Humane Society, 1837 W. Pleasant Valley Blvd.
– Fiore’s True Value Hardware, 5514 Sixth Ave.
– Lighthouse Hardware, 13198 Dunnings Highway, Claysburg.
– Gartland Supply and Country Store, 3961 Cove Mountain Road, Martinsburg.
– Ace Fix-It Hardware, 112 Logan Ave., Tyrone.
– Mill Hill Agway, 161 Mill Hill Road, Williamsburg.
Dog owners also have the option of securing a dog license by completing an online application available on the county’s website at www.blairco.org, which paves the way for the dog license to be mailed. Those using that option should be aware that the vendor processing the online application adds a $2 fee to the cost of the license.
Carothers said Tuesday that based on a review of available records, he believes the county sold about 7,100 dog licenses in 2024. He also reported seeing more in lifetime licenses, possibly because of price increases that took effect in 2024 and/or the state’s decision to eliminate license fee discounts for spayed and neutered canines.
Dog owners interested in a lifetime license, Carothers added, have to present proof that a canine has a microchip or a tattoo. Verification forms, available at the county treasurer’s office, must be signed by the person who implanted the dog’s microchip or tattoo.
For dogs without microchips and/or tattoos, the purchase of an annual license — attached to a dog’s collar — has long been recognized as a valuable tool in trying to reunite lost dogs with their owners.
“If you love your dog, license your dog,” Redding said.