Q: I just moved from Canada to Miami Beach and I'm confused about how I'm supposed to get a license for my pets. I have four cats and a dog. Where I come from we are not required to keep licenses for animals. Could you explain how and why this is done?

A: Even many South Florida natives and longtime pet owners don't fully understand the laws and procedures surrounding animal licenses. Thanks for giving me the opportunity to explain them.

Pet licenses are required for all dogs over 4 months old in Miami-Dade County. Cats are exempt and there is currently no plan to require licenses them.

In Broward County, however, dogs and cats over 2 months old must be licensed.

Annual licenses can be obtained through most licensed veterinary general practitioners and Animal Services.

In Broward County, three-year licenses are now available. They can also be obtained by mail and through an online renewal service. Miami-Dade is working on a similar plan to make three-year licenses available but there is no mail-in or online option yet.

Proof of current rabies vaccination status is necessary for licensure.

The goal of licensing is threefold:

• It attempts to ensure that all animals are vaccinated against rabies and that our community understands the importance of curbing the spread of this uniformly fatal disease through vaccines.

• It helps identify animals as owned and may prove vital in returning a lost pet to his or her home.

• It helps fund our municipal Animal Services departments.

The trickiest bit of the licensing process (and the one that irks pet owners the most) comes in the form of citations for noncompliance. While in Broward pets are primarily cited only when found roaming tagless, the most commonly issued Miami-Dade citations are spontaneously generated by the county's computer whenever an owner does not renew the license in a ''timely'' fashion.

I always urge owners to contact their veterinarian or their county's Animal Services for more complete explanations of the term ''timely'' to ensure they remain in compliance.

Because the fines for tardy license renewal in Miami-Dade can reach $160 I urge you to see a veterinarian within 30 days of your move so you can quickly comply with the necessary bureaucratic nightmare that comprises licensing in our county. Welcome to Miami.

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