Under the new system, police officers can use a mobile phone app to scan a QR code attached to the dog's collar to get instant access to its registration details. Photo from South China Morning Post



By Phoebe Zhang





Dog owners who let their pets roam the streets, fail to clean up after their animals or allow other misdemeanours can now be fined by police by scanning a QR code in eastern China.



The latest city to introduce the system is Xuzhou, in Jiangsu province, where a mobile phone app is soon to be launched that will allow dog owners to register their animals online, Jiangsu Television reported on Thursday.



The process is straightforward ― the dog owner uploads their documents to the app, pays a fee and the police then issue a licence.



In Jinan, Shandong province, the app has already been in use since January last year. If, for example, a police officer comes across a dog off its leash on the streets, they can open the app on their phone and scan the QR code on a tag attached to the animal's collar to get instant access to its details, where it is registered and any previous problems, according to Beijing Youth Daily.





Dog tags with QR codes available on Alibaba