But of late I've been wondering if he might have another reason for showing off his anatomy: it's pretty valuable. Or at least Ingham County (MI) seems to think so.
When we went to register our dogs this week, we were hit with sticker shock: licenses for unaltered dogs ($40/year) cost more than three times as much as licenses for neutered dogs ($12/year). Tabasco was spayed when we got her, and that's fine. We don't need any puppies. But we've deliberately kept Scooter intact, to help preserve his aggressiveness and "fight" for protecting the livestock (and challenging any bullheaded livestock who might try developing a mind of their own).
Is this "differential fee structure" a new trend, or is Ingham County the only place doing this? Mrs Yeoman Farmer and I are pretty resentful at the heavy-handed manner in which the local authorities seem to be trying to dictate behavior to us, but we'll certainly pay the fee. It's just that every time Scooter rolls over on his back to sleep, I can't help thinking about how much those "jewels" are costing us.
3 comments:
Washtenaw County has a differential fee structure, but it's based on shots received, not on whether the dog is neutered/spayed (and it's $10/$5).
peace,
I am surprised that you are surprised. I have never owned a dog, and so have never faced this question personally, but I have heard of these differential fees in a number of places that I have lived, often enough that I have assumed that it was fairly common everywhere.
We don't need to license or register a dog down here in SC.
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