Choosing and owning a pet

• Can your lifestyle, activities, hobbies, holidays, other priorities adjust to fit a pet?
• Is there adequate space?
• Can the pet be securely confined?
• Can you provide adequate shelter?
• If renting, are you permitted to own a pet?
• How will you care for your pet if your living arrangements change?
• If you have young children, will you have time to supervise them with a pet?
• Can you set up separate areas for pets and children?

• Are you prepared to care for a dog/cat for more than 10 years?
• Does the breed you are considering require specific care?
• How much time can you devote to caring for your pet for exercise, grooming, obedience, and play?
• Who will look after your pet when you're away?
• What hours do you work, what will you do with your pet while you are at work?
• Are you prepared to confine your pet inside at night (to stop cats from wandering and killing wildlife, to stop dogs from roaming)?
• Can you afford registration, vaccination, general health care, vet bills, food, grooming, de-sexing, obedience training, boarding?

Kittens and puppies

If you are thinking about getting a puppy or a kitten, can you:

• provide daytime care and meals at regular intervals until it is six months old?
• confine your pet in suitable accommodation for the first three weeks to help it settle into its new home?
• keep your pet away from other animals until after their initial vaccinations?

Costs can include:

• purchase
• housing, feeding
• microchipping and registration
• vet checks, vaccinations, worming, tick and flea treatments
• unplanned medical treatment
• pet insurance
• desexing (permanent sterilisation)
• grooming, training, boarding
• toys, leashes, collars, name tag.

Teach your children the dos and don'ts:

• Do approach a dog slowly with the back of your hand extended.
• Do curl your fingers and allow the dog to sniff your hand.
• Do stand still, like a fence post, if approached by a strange dog.
• Do avoid eye contact with the dog.
• Don't approach a strange dog without permission from the owner.
• Don't approach dogs that are sleeping or eating.
• Don't squeal or jump around an unfamiliar dog.

You must register your dog or cat with Council. Penalties apply for failing to register your pets.

Microchipping and registration enables the return of stray animals to their owner. This minimises trauma to the animal and also to the owner.

Desex your animals if you do not plan to breed them - neutered animals make better, more contented pets. Preferably, this should be done before the age of six months.

Desexed animals are less stressed by reproductive or territorial demands, have increased health and well-being and have reduced registration costs.

Cats won't wander or fight as much, are quieter and less odorous, when desexed.

Uncontrolled breeding results in large numbers of unwanted cats joining the stray and feral populations. Most suffer through disease and injury, and many prey on native wildlife to survive.

Your neighbours can complain if your dog is noisy or disturbs the peace unreasonably.

A Council Ranger will discuss the problem with you and offer advice on what you can do about it. If the problem continues and they don't think you are making a real effort to stop the dog barking, Council can prosecute and you may be fined.

• Find out more about managing barking dogs.

Your neighbours are entitled to enjoy their property without your dog or cat roaming around. Roaming cats can kill birds and wildlife, and start fights, and wandering dogs can dig up gardens, chase animals and scare or even attack people.

If a neighbour asks you to stop your dog or cat coming onto their property you must do so. Penalties apply for failure to control your pet.

Dogs

• It is an offence to allow your dog to wander on its own outside your premises.
• You must ensure confinement to your property during the day and at night (gates must be shut and the dog must be unable to leave the property) except when being exercised on a leash or under effective control.
• Dogs are curious and have a natural instinct to roam. A roaming dog is in danger of being injured by a car or by other dogs.
• Fines can be imposed on the owner of a wandering dog.

Cats

• Your cat must also be confined to your property, especially at night.
• Confining your cat will keep it safe from accidents and cat fights, and helps protect native nocturnal wildlife from your cat.
• It is an offence for your cat to wander on private property against the wishes of the owner/occupier.
• Find out more about preventing your cat from wandering.

If your cat or dog has died, you must notify Council within 28 days (or 24 hours in the case of a restricted dog, dangerous or menacing dog) of its death.

Notification can be by telephone or in writing by email or letter to Council.

In the case of a restricted or declared dangerous dog, Council may require you to provide documentary evidence from a veterinary practitioner that your dog has died.

Any dog can attack, even your own dog or one you are familiar with.

• Online Dog Attack or Menacing Dog Report

Adults

• Dog attacks on adults are caused mostly by dogs outside their owner's property.
• Keeping your dog securely confined to your property and following the rules of responsible pet ownership will help prevent your dog attacking someone.

Children

• Dog attacks on children occur mostly in the yard of their own home or another person's home.
• Dogs tend to attack or bite out of fear or an attempt to dominate. Children are often vulnerable targets for a dog attack, even from a dog they know and love. They may provoke aggressive responses by inadvertently challenging the dog or intruding into its territory.
• Most injuries to children are inflicted on the head or face.
• Always supervise your dog around children.
• Teach your children:
  • not to put their faces close to a dog's mouth
  • not to hug dogs tightly or tease them
  • not to pat a strange dog, a dog that is tied up, a dog that has been left in a car or a dog that is eating.

The terms "restricted" "dangerous" and "menacing" have specific legal meanings, and there are certain rules that owners of these dogs must follow. These include:

• The dog must be desexed, microchipped and registered.
• You are required to pay a $195 annual permit, in addition to a one-off lifetime pet registration fee. You can pay for this permit via the NSW Pet Registry website or at Council.
• The dog must not, at any time, be in the sole charge of a person under the age of 18 years.
• At home, the dog must be kept in a certified purpose-built enclosure and warning signs must be displayed on the property.
• The dog must wear a securely fitted muzzle when outside its enclosure (at home or in a public place).
• When outside the enclosure, the dog must wear a distinctive red and yellow striped collar and be walked on a secure chain or lead at all times.
• Council must be notified of the following within 24 hours if the dog:
  • has attacked or injured a person or animal
  • is lost or missing
  • has died
  • is being kept at a different address in Eurobodalla Shire
  • is being kept outside the Eurobodalla Shire area.

Menacing dogs: Must comply with the same control requirements as dangerous dogs outlined above, with one exception - menacing dogs do not need to be kept in a purpose-built enclosure at home.

More information

• Read more about dangerous and menacing dogs.
• Report a dog attack or menacing dog.

Talk to your neighbour first

If you have a genuine problem with your neighbour's pet, start by discussing your concerns with your neighbour.

Approach the topic in a friendly and constructive way. Your neighbour may not realise that their pet is being a nuisance, and may be just as interested as you are to solve the problem. Try to work together to find a mutually acceptable solution.

Make a complaint to Council

If talking to your neighbour doesn't work, you can contact Council. Council will pursue legitimate concerns, but to pursue the matter properly they will need your help. You should be prepared to:

• give your name and address to Council
• put your concerns in writing to your neighbours in the case of an unwanted dog or cat on your property
• keep records of the incidents, for example, keep a diary of how often a cat comes into your garden or when you see a dog wandering on its own up the street
• sign a Statutory Declaration of your complaint if Council asks you to
• be a witness if court prosecution becomes necessary.

Outside your home you must collect your dog's droppings.

Dog poo in our streets, parks and public areas is detrimental to public health and the environment.

Dog faeces can end up in storm water drains and pollute our waterways and make public places significanlty less enjoyable for community members.

It is your responsibility to carry a plastic bag or other pooper scooper to clean up and dispose of your dog's droppings adequately. You can be fined for not cleaning up after your dog.

You can use our map to find suitable places to exercise your dog. There are also signs at the entry points to beaches and exercise areas to let you know where and when you can take your dog.

Most Eurobodalla beaches and exercise areas are designated as one of these three types of access:

• 24-hour off-leash: dogs allowed off-leash at all times
• Timeshare, which means:
  • from 1 May to 31 October: dogs allowed at the designated area at any time.
  • from 1 November to 30 April:
    • dogs allowed on or off-leash before 9am and after 5pm
    • dogs prohibited during the day from 9am to 5pm
• Prohibited: dogs prohibited at all times