Nairobi County Animal Control and Welfare Bill 2024 has now come up with proposals and among the proposals is the requirement of cat owners in Nairobi to pay Sh200 as licence fee to the county government.

This licence will be renewed annually and will ensure all cats are up-to-date with rabies vaccinations and are kept in favourable conditions.

Now that is not all of it. According to Animal Control and Welfare Bill 2024 cat owners will have to ensure that the pets do not “scream or cry in a manner that disturbs the peace of residents”, if you know cats really well, then you know that they will boss you around even in your own house.

Now how exactly will the cat owners tell their cats to cry or communicate in a manner that pleases the Nairobi city county officials?

The proposal was met with a string of complaints and reactions that begged the question; why should one pay taxes on everything?

It is clear the county government failed to do its research and engage relevant stakeholders including rescue organizations, veterinary groups and even cat owners themselves.

Even though animal welfare has been dubbed a huge problem in the city, taxing might just be the not-so-smart idea.

The head of the Kenya Society for the Protection and Care of Animals (KSPCA), Emma Ngugi in a recent interview says it will be harder for organizations like KSPCA to get people to take responsibility.

If that is not surprising, may it be known that according to the controversial Bill, failure to comply with the licensing and welfare standards could potentially be considered a crime and one would be liable to penalties including jail terms.

Hello prison: we are looking for the section for cat owners who tried to help by giving cats a home but were forced to pay a fee and they forgot to.

We cannot deny the fact that there is an overpopulation of cats and the rabid ones are a threat to human health and the environment.

But better approaches can be used, otherwise the streets will be full with even the ones that had homes but had to be let go because of the unnecessary taxes.

According to Ms Ngugi, low-cost vet services can be introduced for those who can pay and even better, mass sterilization campaigns be conducted for stray cats and dogs.

Brace yourselves people of Nairobi, that cat you love could land you in jail just because you failed to comply by some rules which are not yet approved, but might just be.

One Kenyan on the internet even questions what happens if your cat gives birth to kittens: will they be licensed? Will the license expire?