Owner responsibilities

As a pet owner, it is your responsibility to make sure your pet is not a nuisance to your neighbours.

Dogs

Read Animal Welfare Victoria's code on having a dog.

Reporting an injured dog

If you find a dog that is sick or injured, please take it straight to the closest vet if you can.

Deceased animal

If you find a deceased animal on our land, call us on 9490 4222. If it is after-hours, you will be connected to our after-hours service.

Reporting dogs at large

If you see a dog without its owner, make contact with our Municipal Laws Team on 9490 4222 during business hours and an officer will attend and collect the dog.

When reporting, try to provide as much information as possible to assist officers with collecting the dog.

Some helpful information includes:

  • description of the dog, for example breed, size and colour
  • the last seen location of the dog and where it was heading
  • characteristics of the dog, for example displaying aggressive behavior.

Dangerous behaviour

If you witness or experience a dog that has approached a person within 3m, displayed aggressive behaviour such as snarling, growling, barking and/or raising its hackles, you can make a report to our Municipal Laws Team for further investigation.

To help us successfully investigate, tell us:

  • what you observed
  • where and when you observed the behaviour
  • characteristics and description of the dog
  • any information that will help us identify the dog and its owner.

You may be asked to provide a statement detailing what occurred.

Pending investigation, we may declare a dog as menacing if it is proven that a dog has:

  • rushed at a person
  • caused a non-serious bite to a person
  • has been declared a menacing dog by another council.

The Domestic Animals Act 1994 allows us to declare a dog as dangerous if:

  • it has caused serious injury to a person or animal by biting or attacking
  • it is kept as a guard dog or has been trained to attack people or animals
  • it is declared a menacing dog and its owner has received 2 infringement notices for the dog not being leashed and/or muzzled in a public place
  • it has been declared a dangerous dog by another council.

Dog attacks

Pet owners are legally and financially responsible for any dog attack involving their pet. In an emergency, call 000.

Consult our dog attacks page for detailed information on how to avoid and report them.

Barking

Barking dogs disrupt the peace and lead to potential community conflicts. Techniques to reduce this behaviour include:

  • providing adequate exercise
  • creating a comfortable environment
  • train and socialise with positive reinforcement, commands and time with other dogs
  • reducing isolation and spending time with direct attention
  • use distraction methods like offering toys or chew items
  • exposing to the cause of barking to gain familiarity by offering rewards
  • seeking help from professional dog trainers.

Disobedience

Obedience is a great way to socialise your dog and meet people with a common interest.

There are several dog obedience clubs in and around Banyule:

Desexing

Desexing your dog avoids unwanted puppies, helps calm aggressive animals and reduces their instinct to wander.

Have your dog desexed at:

Cats

Read Animal Welfare Victoria's code on having a cat.

Reporting an injured cat

If you find a cat that is sick or injured, please take it straight to the closest vet or to the Cat Protection Society if you can.

Reporting a deceased animal

If you find a deceased animal on our land, please call us on 9490 4222. If it is after-hours, you will be connected to our after-hours service.

Nuisance and trespassing cats

Cat nuisance can include trespassing on property, fighting, killing wildlife, upsetting other animals, defecation or spraying, damaging gardens or sitting on cars.

All cats must be confined in their owner’s property and must not trespass on private property without the permission of the property owner.

If you experience cat nuisance and you know the owners, start by speaking with your neighbour. Your neighbour may not be aware of the problem and the nuisance being caused when the cat is out. If the cat owner does not take action or does not agree that there is a problem, contact us with your complaint.

For information on how to prevent your cat from becoming a nuisance please contact the Cat Protection Society or contact our Municipal Laws Team.

Cat trapping

If a cat is trespassing on your property, you can borrow a cat trap from us for free to safely capture it. Traps can be collected from our partners at the Cat Protection Society during business hours.

Once the cat has been contained, we will collect the cat during business hours and attempt to verify the address of where the cat lives.

Desexing

Desexing your cat avoids unwanted kittens, helps calm aggressive animals and reduces their instinct to wander.

Have your cat desexed at:

Free voucher

We offer a free cat desexing voucher year round for local residents to use at vets in Banyule.

This helps with the reduction of strays and and protects our native wildlife. You must visit one of our customer services centres in person to get a voucher.

To be eligible, you must:

  • provide proof of local residency
  • provide proof of pet registration and microchipping
  • be able to transport your pet to and from a vet
  • agree to desex your pet within 30 days.

Vouchers are valid for 1 month from issue date, and are accepted at all vets in Banyule.

Cat Protection Society offer

If you have a health care, pension or seniors card, the Cat Protection Society are offering subsidised cat desexing.

Other animals

Reporting a found native animal

If you find a native animal, call Wildlife Victoria on 8400 7300.

Wandering livestock

Please call us on 9490 4222. If it is after-hours, you will be connected to our after-hours service.

More than 2 dogs or cats

You must get an excess animal permit if you have 3 or more cats or dogs (not combined).

Contact us

Call our Municipal Laws & Public Assets Team on 9490 4222 with any questions.

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