Auditor urges dog owners to buy tags for their pets

County dog tag fees double to $16 after Saturday.
& lt;a href=mailto:tullis@vindy.com & gt;By NANCY TULLIS & lt;/a & gt;
VINDICATOR SALEM BUREAU
LISBON -- On the door of Columbiana County Auditor Nancy Milliken's office at the courthouse is a picture of a dog -- but not just any dog. According to the photo caption, the blond puffball with dark eyes is "Maggie Milliken."
Issuing a plea for Columbiana County residents to buy dog tags for their canines, Milliken said Friday, "I know how important Maggie is to our family and hopefully your dog is just as important to you."
Milliken said dog owners sometimes forget that with the ownership of a dog also come certain responsibilities, and one of those is yearly purchase of dog tags.
"While we can maintain that our only reason for purchasing a tag is because the Ohio Revised Code Section 955.01 mandates the purchase, I for one will readily admit that I purchase a tag for my dog Maggie because I love her and do not want to lose her," Milliken said.
"Take time from your very busy schedules and obtain the dog tags as a little insurance for your dogs in the event he [or she] would ever become lost."
Deadline
Columbiana County dog owners have through Saturday to buy 2004 county dog tags without paying a penalty fee for late registration. According to the auditor's dog tag application, the license requirement does not apply only to adult dogs. Puppies must be licensed once they are 3 months old.
Through Saturday, the dog tags are $8 each. After that day, the price of the tags will be $16, and can be bought only at the auditor's office.
"Without a tag, Maggie may be subject to capture by a local dog warden, but my greatest fear is that she might wander from our home and become lost," Milliken said. "Maggie's tag would then become a valuable tool to allow for her safe return to her loving family."
Milliken explained that the identification number and county of origin on the dog tag enables the finder of a lost dog to call the county dog warden's office and obtain the address and phone number of the dog's owner.
Milliken said with a current license on her dog's collar, if Maggie were ever lost, "we would stand a much greater chance of her safe return to us."
"So, please take the time to purchase your dog's 'insurance policy' against becoming just another lost pet."
Where to buy dog tags
Area stores issuing Columbiana County dog tags through Saturday are Runzo's Outdoor Sports, Beloit; Damascus General Store; Ace Hardware, Columbiana; Camera Mart, East Liverpool; Dwyco offices, East Liverpool; Milliken Hardware, East Palestine; Glenn's Archery & amp; Tackle, Guilford Lake; Hanoverton Pro Hardware; Minerva True Value Hardware; Dickey's True Value Hardware, Minerva; Yard Bark and Metzger True Value Hardware, Salem; Jenkin's Feed & amp; Supply, Salineville; and Wellsville Feed & amp; Supply.
& lt;a href=mailto:tullis@vindy.com & gt;tullis@vindy.com & lt;/a & gt;