That does seem silly - dogs font need licenses where I live, and given that mine are never out without a leash and aren’t bolters, I’m darned glad I don’t have that kind of ridiculous nanny-statism to deal with.
Those licenses pay for the dog pound, and help the local govt control the number of dogs. You are only allowed 2 registered dogs, all dogs must be registered etc...
According to the local FB group, it seems to be 99% cats that are taken to the pound.