The threat of citations and a trip to court has apparently pushed some Lawrence County dog owners into getting tags for their pets, albeit belatedly.

Lawrence County Dog Warden Bill Click said since he announced in May that he would take more aggressive measures against errant dog owners, sales have surpassed the 4,500 mark, which is the best that office has done in two or three years.

"We ran the auditor's office out of tags," Click said. "They had to go and order more."

Lawrence County Chief Deputy Auditor Chris Kline said 300 additional tags were ordered Aug. 1. He said each year that office purchases tags based on the previous year's sales.

Click said his two deputy dog wardens have been knocking on doors looking for people who bought tags last year but failed to do so this year.

"It's going well," Click said.

"Every time they knock on a door in a neighborhood they generate several tags we've never got before. We just don't have as much time as we need to do it. We're short on people."

The tags are sold annually from Dec. 1 to Jan. 31. Usually, the Lawrence County Commission extends the deadline a few weeks to give people additional opportunities to make their purchase.

The proceeds from the dog tag sale is used to operate the county dog pound. Owners who are cited into court

for failure to buy the requisite tag can face fines of $150 plus court costs.

Additionally, unlicensed dogs can be seized, Click said.