Cat Management By-law

Council is considering expanding its cat management strategy from one based on resident education, to include proactive regulatory and compliance based management. We seek you feedback by completing the survey below.

Background

Council included a question on cat management in our 2013 Annual Community Survey, which was responded to by 800 ratepayers.

The statistically valid result informed Council that 79 percent of those ratepayers surveyed agreed the City should manage cats in the same way as it manages dogs.

More recently Council considered a petition from 470 City of Burnside residents calling for a change to the current cat management strategy. This change would effectively mean creating a new by-law to manage cats.

How is a by-law created?

Creating a council by-law is a long consultative process.

This consultation and survey is the start of the process which will provide information to Council on whether the community want a cat management by-law and what you would find acceptable in that by-law.

Using this survey your responses will be reported back to Council. Council will then resolve to either stop investigating a cat management by-law or continue with the process to gazettal and enactment of the by-law.

If Council decides to continue the process, then a report must be prepared for the State Legislative Review Committee of Parliament to consider whether the by-law should be disallowed.

If passed by Parliament, four months after gazettal the by-law will be in force.

What will the by-law require cat owners to do?

Cat management by-laws are not new or uncommon. Of the 68 incorporated councils in South Australia at least a third currently have some form of cat by-law.

Recently, the Dog and Cat Management Board have worked with the Local Government Association to jointly develop a template and set of guidelines for a cat by-law template, for councils to consider. This template and its guidelines have been used to develop a draft cat management by-law for your consideration.

Council has prepared a draft cat management by-law, which has the following requirements for owners of cats:

• Owners/carers are required to microchip their cat for identification
• Owners/carers are required to de-sex and tattoo their cat once it reaches the age of three months (with exemptions for health and show cats)
• Nuisance provisions will mean that it is an offence if cat owners fail to appropriately control their cats such that they become a nuisance
• Owners/carers are required to register the cat
• There will be a limit on the number of cats allowed to be kept at premises. Exceptions to allow additional cats to be kept in excess of the limit will be considered by Council following an application by a cat owner/carer.

When might it happen and how much will it cost?

If the community supports the introduction of a by-law for cat management through this process, and it is endorsed by Council, the draft by-law could come into force in early 2015. However, Council will require an implementation phase of 18 months, with no registration fee payable during that time.

The registration fee has not yet been determined, but will be in line with Council’s dog registration fee and the cat registration fees implemented by other local governments currently up to $65 per cat, per annum. Options that Council may consider to assist cat owners/carers are subsidised micro-chipping days, registration concessions and exemptions for relevant circumstances.

The costs of establishment and enforcement are estimated to be in the order of $100,000 to $150,000.

How do I have my say?

Council seeks your feedback in relation to a proposed cat management by-law. Have your say by completing the survey below by 5 pm Monday 30 June 2014.

More information

More information is provided on the City of Burnside website and the Dog and Cat Management Board - Good Cat SA websites.

If you would like further information, please contact Brenton Thomass, Team Leader Ranger Services by using the Email Us form below or call on 8366 4200.