Licensing your Pet

Yes. You can still mail in your pet license application if you prefer. DocuPet provides additional online options, but mail-in applications are still accepted.

No. The transition to DocuPet did not increase costs for taxpayers. All pet licensing fees continue come back to Long Beach Animal Care Services (LBACS).

Yes. If you are licensing your pet for the first time, you will still receive a free pet tag. Upgraded tags are completely optional. You can choose to purchase a premium tag for an additional fee, but a free standard tag is still available to first-time license holders.

Each license tag includes a unique identification code linked to your pet's secure online profile and provides access to HomeSafe®, DocuPet's 24/7 lost pet recovery service. This helps reunite lost pets with their families more quickly. 

Late Penalty 
Pet licenses (dog and cat) are required to be renewed annually. Pet owners have 60 days from the license expiration date to renew their pet license. After 60 days, a late penalty is assessed. After 90 days, citations may be issued.

Administrative Citations
Long Beach Municipal Code Chapter 6.16 provides for the issuance of administrative citations for Long Beach Municipal Code violations. The administrative citation program and the establishment of appropriate fines are intended to act as a reasonable deterrent in preventing Municipal Code violations. 

Fine Schedule 
Each day a violation exists constitutes a separate and distinct offense. Fines are imposed as follows. A $100 fine will be imposed for the initial violation. A $200 fine will be imposed for each instance of a second violation of the same code section committed within one year from the date of the initial violation. A $250 or $500 fine, depending on the violation, will be imposed for any subsequent violation of the same code section committed within one year from the date of the initial violation.

Consequence of Failure to Pay the Fine
Failure to pay fine(s) within the specified time period may result in a 25% late charge, imposition of a special assessment and/or lien against the real property on which the violation occurred, filing of a claim with the small claims court for recovery of the fine and all costs associated with such filing, suspension and/or revocation of any City permits, business licenses, or land use approvals, or any legal remedy available to the City to collect such money. 

Rights of Appeal 
A Cited Party may appeal administrative citations and imposed levies. For cited code violations, the appeal must be requested within thirty (30) calendar days from the date of service of the Citation. In order to appeal, a completed Request for Hearing form together with a deposit in the total amount of outstanding fine(s), late charges, and/or levies must be submitted to the appropriate bureau that issued the citation (see below). Requesting an appeal does not relieve the Cited Party from the requirement to correct all code violations as specified. 

Generally, the only relevant evidence considered for appeal is whether the violations(s) existed on the date and time the Administrative Citation was issued, whether the Cited Party is the Responsible Person who caused or maintained the violation(s), and whether imposed levies resulting from failure of a Responsible Person to correct the violations, were reasonably calculated based upon abatement costs incurred by the City. If an appeal is denied, the entire deposit shall be retained by the City as payment in full of outstanding fines, late fees, and/or levies. 

If an appeal is upheld, the entire deposit shall be refunded to the Cited Party within thirty (30) business days from the date of the written appeal decision. Failure to properly file a written appeal within the appropriate time frame shall constitute a waiver of the Cited Party's right to appeal and seek judicial review. 

How to Pay Your Fine
The amount of your fine is indicated on the front of this citation. You are required to pay your fine in full by the Correction Date noted on the citation. Please mail in your payment with the attached payment remittance slip to the bureau indicated on the citation. 

By Mail: Payment may be made by personal check, cashier's check, or money order payable to the City of Long Beach. 

At Animal Care Services: Payment may be made by Discover, MasterCard, Visa, debit card, personal check, cashier's check, or money order payable to the City of Long Beach.

Please write your citation number on your check or money order. 

Payment of the fine shall not excuse the failure to correct the violation nor shall it bar further enforcement action by the City of Long Beach.

Citations issued by the Animal Care Services Bureau: 
Submit payments and appeals to: 

Animal Care Services Bureau
7700 E. Spring Street
Long Beach CA 90815 

Request for Hearing Forms and Hardship Waiver Forms are available at Animal Care Services and online.

Starting October 1, 2023, all residents of the City of Long Beach and its contract cities of Cerritos, and Signal Hill will be subject to the following dog license fees. Cat licenses are only applicable to Long Beach residents. Senior rates are available for residents aged 60 or above.

Municipal law requires that all cats over the age of four months be licensed as a rabies control measure. Making sure your pet has its current license attached to its collar also is your best insurance of having your pet returned to you in case he or she becomes lost or gets out of your yard. The pet license also lets us know if your pet is currently vaccinated against rabies. The money received from pet license fees helps the department continue to provide quality animal care and control services 24 hours a day, every day of the year.

Effective Friday July 16th, 2010, all cats within the City of Long Beach are required to have an ANNUAL (12 Month) license, including permanent tag and/or microchip.

By municipal code, all cats are required to be spay or neutered. Contact a veterinarian clinic regarding this procedure.

Municipal law requires that every cat four months of age or older must have a current license tag fastened to its collar or microchip. Even pets that "never leave the house" or property have a way of getting out through accidentally open doors, gates, or windows. Also, a natural disaster like an earthquake or fire may cause your pet to flee the safety of your property. Having a pet license on its collar, and/or microchip, will help reunite your lost pet with you.

Yes, you still need your cat licensed. A microchip can be a substitute for a license tag.

Unfortunately, some cats cannot tolerate wearing a collar. That is why Animal Care Services will accept a microchip in-lieu of a collar and license tag. When a cat ends up at shelter we will scan it for a microchip. Just remember to keep your details up-to-date so we can return her to you! In the City of Long Beach, responsible cat owners have the option of either a collar tag or microchip.

According to the California Health Department's Compendium of Rabies Control , Section B.4(e) "Cats are now the most frequently reported domestic rabid animals in the United States". "Feline rabies vaccination is strongly recommended for ALL cats". Feline licensing and identification programs at the local level and use of triennial vaccines are strongly endorsed by the National Association of State Public Heath Veterinarians.

All Vaccinations come with their own set of risks. The public health significance of rabies far outweighs the extremely low risk of a sarcoma developing at a vaccination site. Therefore, feline rabies immunization in California is strongly indicated and may be mandatory in the City of Long Beach.

In the past, veterinarians prescribed annual vaccines. Now veterinarians may recommend that they be given every three years to cats at low risk. Researchers have found that vaccines often provide immunity far beyond one year, reducing the need for frequent revaccinations. Rabies vaccinations at certain intervals may be required by law. Your veterinarian must follow the law. However, you can ask your state licensed veterinarian about testing your cat's rabies antibodies. If the level is high enough, your veterinarian may formally file a written request for a one-year rabies vaccination deferment by completing the following form (FELINE ANTI-RABIES INOCULATION TEMPORARY DEFERMENT FORM) and submitting the completed form to Animal Care Services.

The Long Beach Municipal Code defines it in the following manner:

6.04.025 - Person responsible-Defined.

Whenever in this Title 6 of the Long Beach Municipal Code, the words "person responsible" are used, they shall mean any person owning, having a proprietary interest in harboring or having the care, charge, control, custody or possession of an animal.

It is no longer acceptable for cats to be considered items to be simply discarded with the assumption that "someone else will take care of it". Cats have value and anyone feeding (having the care) of a cat can be considered the Person Responsible. A Person Responsible will need to ensure cats are altered (pursuant to LBMC 6.16.085), vaccinated, and licensed.