Animals and Pets

The Strategy is a living document and will be reviewed annually.

The key objectives of the strategy are:

• To ensure pet owners are educated and aware of the principles of responsible pet ownership.
• To provide a high level of customer service interactions and offer alternative service delivery options where appropriate.
• To encourage compliance with State legislation and Local Laws, and to apply increased and proportionate enforcement responses to matters of non-compliance or continued non-compliance.
• To encourage pet owners to embrace responsible pet ownership concerning registration, micro-chipping, and desexing and ensuring pets in the community are appropriately controlled and contained.
• To improve and increase community-based facilities for dog owners.
• To provide an animal management facility for the welfare, housing, and reclaiming of impounded animals.
• To provide knowledgeable and trained staff to respond to matters of domestic animal management.

Animal management is more than just regulation and enforcement.  We believe that effective animal management contributes to the overall health and well-being of the community.

Animal management encapsulates community responsibility through responsible pet ownership and expectations of our community are focused on pet owners being accountable for the privilege of looking after the needs of an animal in the best interests of neighbours, the local community, the environment, and the pet itself.

Council is committed to promoting responsible domestic pet ownership.  The number of dogs, cats, chickens, roosters, pigeons, and doves you can have is dependent on the size of your property.

The number of animals you can keep is regulated by Council's local laws.

Animals must be kept in a way that does not cause a noise, smell, or wandering nuisance to others.

Registration of an animal does not automatically ensure that the animal is permitted to be kept on a property.

If you would like to keep an animal on your property other than a cat or dog, please contact Council to find out if a permit is required.

Fact sheet - Number of animals per property.

Are you a foster carer? Foster carers are required to be part of a registered animal charity.  The Foster carer can have a maximum of 8 animals per property made up of no more than 4 dogs or 4 cats – this does include their own animals.  Dogs in foster care are required to be registered with the foster carer being recorded as an Alternative Contact on a New Animal Registration Form and the Rescue/Refuge group as the Animal Owner.  The Fraser Coast Adoption Centre does not offer foster care, if you are interested in fostering, please reach out to one of the local rescue groups.