Western Bay of Plenty District Council staff are awaiting a flood of last minute dog registrations as owners rush to register their dogs and avoid the late fee.

An estimated 3000 dog in district are still unregistered for the 2016/17 year, so if you want to avoid the late fee you need to make sure that your pooch is registered by 5pm on Monday, August 1.

Bullmastiffs Monty and Tilly show off their new blue registration tags. Supplied Photo.

For normal dogs the registration fee is $85 and after 5pm Monday it becomes $115.

'We want to make sure everyone gets their registration sorted, because the penalty adds 50 percent of the fee to their payment due – so it's definitely worth getting in on time,” says council compliance and monitoring manager Alison Curtis.

Payment is easier this year with a new online payment system, meaning people don't need to call or visit the service centres, and dog owners can avoid the last minute rush and pay pay over the weekend when the service centres are closed.

By now dog owners should have received a registration pack in the post or by email, which includes all the information they need for the online payment, says Alison.

This year also brings a number of registration fee changes, which includes a lower fee for working dogs and an increase for non-desexed dogs.

'We strongly encourage dog owners to desex their dogs, and take advantage of the lower fee,” says Alison.

'Desexing reduces the instances of dogs wandering, reduces unwanted puppies, and can lessen aggression in some dogs. For these reasons desexing is something we hope to see becoming more common in the near future.”

This year's registration colour is blue.

For more information about the new fees visit the Western Bay of Plenty District Council's website.

To register your dog call 07 571 8008, visit your local service centre or do it online at: secure.westernbay.govt.nz/register/dogpayment.aspx