The recently updated cat control bylaw is now in effect.
Council passed second and third readings of the bylaw during the March 18 meeting.
After the first reading was passed on Feb. 19, Sundre citizens were provided the opportunity to give their input on the proposed bylaw.
No public input was given, said Kevin Heerema, the town's bylaw officer.
“I did get one phone call from a lady who said thank you, she appreciated that it was being updated,” he said.
Given that no complaints, comments or questions were made, council felt the bylaw was ready to be put in place.
This affects all cat owners within the town's boundaries.
Kevin Heerema initially proposed the updated bylaw to council on Feb. 11, where they reviewed it and discussed a few changes they wanted to be made.
Heerema made the amendments at council's request and brought the bylaw back to council on Feb. 19, where they passed first reading.
One of the amendments was that council thought the owner of a cat should only have to be of age 16, rather than 18.
Also, in the proposed bylaw, it said that cats don't have to wear their licence tag outdoors if they have a tattoo or microchip.
This was changed so that cats are mandated to wear their tags outdoors, to match the dog bylaw.
Cats left unattended in motor vehicles are also addressed in the new bylaw.
Also, if an owner wants to foster a cat or has a cat and is new to town, they now have 10 days to license their cat with the town of Sundre, rather than 30.
The new bylaw outlines stricter rules on cat ownership in town and hasn't been updated since 2008, said Heerema.
The reasoning for this is because last year there was an increase in the number of cats found at large, he said.
No owner is permitted to allow his or her cat to run at large, according to the updated bylaw.
Fees for licensing cats were increased in January and now fines for obstructing the bylaw are increasing as well, he said.
