Tucson, AZ Animal Ordinances: Microchipping (2026)

Section 4-13(e) covers the order of compliance issued after an animal is declared dangerous under Section 4-13(a) or (c). Within that order, subsection (e)(5) specifically requires the owner to pay the reasonable cost for the city enforcement agent to tattoo and microchip the animal with an identification number, and the city enforcement agent must maintain a registry of those numbers and the corresponding owners. This sits alongside the order's broader 30-day mandate, spelled out in the section's introductory sentence, that the owner have a licensed veterinarian spay or neuter, microchip and tattoo the dangerous animal at the owner's own expense, and then obtain written veterinary certification that the work was completed.

Microchipping isn't limited to the declared-dangerous track, either: under Section 4-97(4), when the city enforcement agent impounds a dog caught running at large, the agent may microchip that dog at the owner's expense before it can be redeemed or adopted out. By continuing to own a declared-dangerous animal, the owner also consents under Section 4-13(f) to inspection of the veterinarian's certification of microchipping and tattooing, along with the animal itself and its liability insurance documents.