Is It Illegal To Have A Dog Unrestrained In The Tray Of A Ute?

[Leema]

Is it illegal to have a dog unrestrained in the tray of a ute?

According to what legislation or act?

[Jeff Jones]

South Australia

Transporting unrestrained dogs is against the law as provided in the Dog and Cat Management Act 1995. The Act was amended in 2004 to include the legislation.

Deb Kelly, Manager of the Animal Welfare Unit within the SA Department for Environment and Heritage, wrote the policy regarding the issue.

"The purpose of the restraint in utes is really three fold," Ms Kelly said. "First, there is a safety issue of the dog falling out of the ute and causing an accident for the car behind. Second, the safety of the dog itself, and third, to address the issue of a dog left in the back of a ute that bites people going past."

The maximum fine if breaking the law is $750

[Raelene]

In NSW and ACT it is. Dog also has to be restrained within the vehicle.

Hmm not sure which legislation but the police can book you for it.

[smooch]

In NSW and ACT it is. Dog also has to be restrained within the vehicle.

Hmm not sure which legislation but the police can book you for it.

They sure do have to be restrained in and on a vehicle. I was pulled over by police for having Smooch unrestrained in a vehicle but when the police actually had a look Smooch had his harness and safety belt on.

[Dxenion]

NSW

NSW Legislation Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1979 No 200

7 Carriage and conveyance of animals

(2A) Without limiting subsection (1), a person must not carry or convey a dog (other than a dog being used to work livestock), on the open back of a moving vehicle on a public street unless the dog is restrained or enclosed in such a way as to prevent the dog falling from the vehicle.

Maximum penalty: 50 penalty units or imprisonment for 6 months, or both.

Road Rules 2008

297 Driver to have proper control of a vehicle etc

(1A) A driver must not drive a vehicle if a person or an animal is in the driver’s lap.

Maximum penalty: 20 penalty units.

There is no specific reference in the legislation covering the restraint of dogs inside the vehicle but the police can use Rule 297 if they feel that the dog is distracting the driver (which means that the driver does not have proper control of the vehicle).

[Diva]

What Dxenion wrote is entirely consistent with what I believe the law to be in the ACT too. The question came up recently on a radio talk back program with a police rep.

A dog on a ute tray has to be restrained so that it can't go over the side, and a dog cannot be on a driver's lap.

However, there is no requirement that a dog be restrained inside a car apart from not interfering with the driver.

Edited March 17, 2011 by Diva

[Dxenion]

This article by Caroline Zambrano titled Dog Safety in the Car sums it up nicely.

Laws around the land

ACT

Dogs are required to be restrained on the back of a moving vehicle under the Animal Welfare Act 1992, said Lee-Anne Wahren, Policy Officer within Environment Planning and Legislation, who is responsible for reviewing all animal welfare policy in the ACT Government.

Ms Wahren said correspondence from the RSPCA regarding injuries to animals handed in to the society and a number of veterinarian reports initiated the amendment to the Act in 1999. The maximum fine for breaching the law is $2000.

Victoria

The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1986 requires dogs to be restrained on moving vehicles, said Dr Stephen Tate, Director of Bureau of Animal Welfare within the Vic Department of Primary Industries. The maximum fine for breaching the law is $500.

Mr Apostolidades, who has been RSPCA inspector for 23 years, said the number of dog injuries in Victoria has dropped dramatically since the legislation came into effect in 1995.

In Victoria, only police can stop a vehicle carrying an unrestrained dog but an RSPCA inspector can take the registration number and trace the owner or follow the vehicle until it stops and then question the owner. Mr Apostolidades said the RSPCA is now putting in a submission to amend the law to be able to issue a Personal Infringement Notice (PIN) to offending drivers, instead of the matter going straight to the Magistrate's Court. If drivers choose to contest the notice, the matter would then go to court, he said.

Queensland

Having an unrestrained dog on a moving vehicle could breach both the Transport Operations (Road Use Management -- Road Rules) Regulation 1999 and the Animal Care and Protection Act 2001.

The Transport Operations Regulation, administered by the Department of Transport, states it is an offence to have an unsecured load on the back of a vehicle and that applies to dogs, said Dr Rick Symons, Manager of the Animal Welfare Unit within the Qld Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries.

The Animal Care and Protection Act does not specifically mention dogs restrained on vehicles, but it places a duty of care on owners of animals to ensure the welfare needs of animals are met.

"It is an offence under the Act for a person in charge of an animal to breach this duty of care by transporting the animal in a way that is inappropriate for the animal's welfare," he said.

A breach of duty of care can result in a fine of $22,500 (and up to five times this amount for a corporation) or one year's imprisonment.

Northern Territory

The Animal Welfare Act 1999 states, "A person transporting an animal must do so in a manner that does not unreasonably or unnecessarily inflict suffering on the animal."

Peter Brice, the Animal Welfare Advisory Committee Executive Officer for NT, said the Act replaced the old Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act and is primarily enforced by the RSPCA. Breaking the law will incur an on-the-spot fine of $100.

"Everybody in the Northern Territory has a ute," Mr Brice said. "They pop a couple of dogs on the back and go hunting on the weekends, but (the law) is widely publicised and it's accepted."

NSW

The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1979 requires a dog to be restrained on the back of a moving vehicle or enclosed in such a way as to prevent the dog falling from the vehicle.

The maximum penalty is $5500 or six months in jail, according to Dr Ian Lugton, Senior Veterinary Officer within the Animal Welfare Unit of the NSW Department of Primary Industries. Dr Lugton said by March he expects officers to have authorisation to track down offenders involved in motor vehicle offences by following up on the vehicle's registration details.

Western Australia

No legislation specifically requires dogs to be restrained on the back of moving vehicles, however the Animal Welfare Act 2002 states a person in charge of an animal is defined as being cruel to an animal "if the animal is transported in a way that causes, or is likely to cause, it unnecessary harm," said Vicky Nazer, Research and Administration Officer within the Animal Welfare Branch of the WA Department of Local Government and Regional Development.

"So in a case where the Act of transporting a dog on a ute was causing it, or likely to cause it, unnecessary harm, the person in charge of the animal could be charged with an offence of cruelty under the Act," Ms Nazer said.

The maximum penalty is $50,000 and imprisonment for five years.

South Australia

Transporting unrestrained dogs is against the law as provided in the Dog and Cat Management Act 1995. The Act was amended in 2004 to include the legislation.

Deb Kelly, Manager of the Animal Welfare Unit within the SA Department for Environment and Heritage, wrote the policy regarding the issue.

"The purpose of the restraint in utes is really three fold," Ms Kelly said. "First, there is a safety issue of the dog falling out of the ute and causing an accident for the car behind. Second, the safety of the dog itself, and third, to address the issue of a dog left in the back of a ute that bites people going past."

The maximum fine if breaking the law is $750.

Tasmania

The Dog Control Act 2000 states, "The owner or person in charge of a dog must restrict the dog sufficiently while it is in or on a vehicle so that it is unable to leave the vehicle or attack any person or animal outside the vehicle."

RSPCA Tasmania Chief Inspector Graeme Lewis said only police officers could enforce the law. Breaking the law has a maximum fine of $500.

Edited March 17, 2011 by Dxenion

[Leema]

Thank-you very much for your responses.