Act New Dog And Cat Laws

[Lhok]

Article is a bit short on information as to what the new laws are

Link http://www.canberratimes.com.au/act-news/new-legislation-bans-puppy-farms-and-intensive-breeding-in-canberra-20150324-1m6ol6.html

New legislation to stamp out puppy farms and the intensive breeding of domestic animals in Canberra passed through the Legislative Assembly on Tuesday.

The Domestic Animals (Breeding) Legislation Amendment Bill aims to stop breeding operations that exploit dogs and cats bred for profit.

It passed unanimously and follows ACT laws enacted in October 2013 which established fines of as much as $11,000 for breaches of a code of practice.

Territory and Municipal Services Minister Shane Rattenbury said the legislation would prevent cruel and inhumane breeding practices.

It is the second element of animal protections included in the governance agreement he signed with Labor to form government after the 2012 election.

"Female dogs and cats in intensive breeding operations can have a very poor quality of life. They are often kept in inadequate conditions and treated purely as industrial breeding machines," he said.

"Females may be kept almost permanently pregnant, placing enormous stress on their bodies and then simply destroyed or abandoned when they become too old to produce commercially-viable sized litters.

"As a result of the poor conditions in which they are bred, offspring are likely to suffer congenital defects, a weakened immune system, and as a result, a shorter lifespan. They may also develop ongoing behavioural issues from a lack of trust in their keepers."

The legislation criminalises the intensive breeding of female dogs and cats with penalties of up to $15,000 for an individual and $75,000 for a corporation.

Mr Rattenbury said new offences included recklessly allowing a dog or cat to breed contrary to declared standards.

The legislation also establishes a licensing scheme for breeders to ensure animal welfare standards are maintained via site inspections.

Licensees will have to display their breeding licence number in advertisements for animals they have bred.

"This legislation will ensure the ACT has high standards for pet breeding and improve health and welfare outcomes for both female cats and dogs and their offspring," Mr Rattenbury said.

--Lhok

[tdierikx]

new offences included recklessly allowing a dog or cat to breed contrary to declared standards

... and those "declared" standards are?

Fluff piece short on facts and long on emotive text... grrr!

T.

[Diva]

here is more info Edited March 25, 2015 by Diva

[Sheridan]

I don't believe there are any puppyfarms in the ACT. The nearest one is in NSW, the one that sells at the Hall markets.

[Tempus Fugit]

here is more info

Typical of legislators to sneak in extra stuff that has nothing to do with breeding.

[Steve]

Not to mention the fact that there are no peer reviewed studies to back up anything they think which pushed them to make laws for it. Smoke and mirrors again.

[keetamouse]

They should be targeting the backyard breeders. :mad

[BarbedWire]

They should be targeting the backyard breeders. :mad

I agree with this. The notice boards of the local shopping centres would be a good place to start.

[Vehs]

I think it's a positive step that might lead the way for actual change.

I'm intersted in seeing what breeding standards might get up though

[ronja]

Definitely need to tackle the backyard breeders. It's already illegal in ACT to breed without a licence and to have an undesexed dog. Sadly this is not enforced at all.

[Simply Grand]

Yes, it's a real shame, even when entire dogs are impounded by DAS they are released with a fine but no actual enforcement of them being desexed. And lots of strays end up at the RSPCA rather then the pound and RSPCA can't fine people so there are no consequences.

And yet I'm confident none of the owners of the pregnant mums and litters that end up at RSPCA have a permit to keep an entire dog!!

[_PL_]

They should be targeting the backyard breeders. :mad

I agree with this. The notice boards of the local shopping centres would be a good place to start.

Absolutely. Nobody enforces anything because they aren't provided with extra resources to do so. And the BYB's know that.

Better to legislate against sitting ducks like people who have already bothered to do their paperwork. THere's less and less encouragement to do the right thing.

[Steve]

Yes, it's a real shame, even when entire dogs are impounded by DAS they are released with a fine but no actual enforcement of them being desexed. And lots of strays end up at the RSPCA rather then the pound and RSPCA can't fine people so there are no consequences.

And yet I'm confident none of the owners of the pregnant mums and litters that end up at RSPCA have a permit to keep an entire dog!!

See problem is they cant MAKE YOU desex your dog - even though they write that into local laws that you need a permit to own one.

Across the board enforcement has been and always will be the biggest problem - in NSW mandatory microchipping has been in since the early 90's and they still don't chip and no one ever enforces it .

[ronja]

One idea could be to provide an incentive for owners to desex their dogs if they end up at RSPCA or DAS.

The cost to have the dog released from RSPCA is about $75 and for DAS about $85 (if already the dog is already microchipped, registered, it's the first offence, and it has been there less than 24 hours). Now if the dog is not desexed then maybe the fine could be +600 dollars to be paid within 30 days OR zero if you get dog desexed within those 30 days and have the vet send in the desexing certificate to DAS. The incentive would be to desex the dog since it would be cheaper than paying the fine. For people who can't afford to desex their dogs they can be pointed to vets that do payment plans.

This could go hand in hand with special heavily discounted "desexing" days (the carrot) run at least once a year.

The idea would still require quite a lot of extra work of course so probably not feasible. But maybe it would save some money in the long run, indirectly, by having less dogs end up at RSPCA and DAS and therefore leading to less workload from that perspective.

I have sent screenshots to DAS of people blatantly breaking the law by breeding dogs and advertising them on facebook including their names, phone numbers and addresses. Never received a reply though.

[alpha bet]

Victoria officially introduced their Domestic Animal Business Registration nearly 3 years ago... however councils don't really have the manpower so still havent got around to checking on the existing business let alone chase up the byb or the illegal puppy mills. I finally received my certificate in March even tho I went up to the shire office and paid my fee in Sept 2012 (two and a half years to process the paperwork) and they didn't know anything about it and had to download a form off the internet!

However at least the Vic Legislation is more specific about what is allowed or isn't when it comes to breeding, as well as, who is responsible for enforcing these regulations. Such as:

No puppies can be advertised without the microchip number or the Domestic Animal Business Registration No

Anyone with 3 or more entire bitches has to have a Domestic Animal Bus or be a member of an accepted Breed Association

Members of Assoc e.g. ANKC if they have 10 or more entire bitches must have a Domestic Animal Business Reg

Whereas reading the ACT paperwork provided doesn't have any definitions just that the ACT govt has the right to decide etc.... but no indications of what that actually means; how they intend to go about it; or who is responsible....so does seem a little as if it is a fluff piece just to pacify some of the noisy welfare voices.

[tdierikx]

Funny how Vic councils managed to find the manpower to chase up all of those "pitbulls" when that sweet piece of legislation came out... but still have difficulty chasing up existing legislation with regards to animals - microchipping, illegal breeding practices, etc...

T.

[BarbedWire]

One idea could be to provide an incentive for owners to desex their dogs if they end up at RSPCA or DAS.

The cost to have the dog released from RSPCA is about $75 and for DAS about $85 (if already the dog is already microchipped, registered, it's the first offence, and it has been there less than 24 hours). Now if the dog is not desexed then maybe the fine could be +600 dollars to be paid within 30 days OR zero if you get dog desexed within those 30 days and have the vet send in the desexing certificate to DAS. The incentive would be to desex the dog since it would be cheaper than paying the fine. For people who can't afford to desex their dogs they can be pointed to vets that do payment plans.

This could go hand in hand with special heavily discounted "desexing" days (the carrot) run at least once a year.

The idea would still require quite a lot of extra work of course so probably not feasible. But maybe it would save some money in the long run, indirectly, by having less dogs end up at RSPCA and DAS and therefore leading to less workload from that perspective.

I have sent screenshots to DAS of people blatantly breaking the law by breeding dogs and advertising them on facebook including their names, phone numbers and addresses. Never received a reply though.

Good ideas Ronja. So many of the dogs at DAS that don't make it look like the products of backyard breeding and some still very young. If DAS were more proactive in other ways it would save them this sort of work, which must be very unpleasant for the rangers, at the end. Perhaps breeders names should go on the microchip. I would love it if some of those backyard breeders were made to hold the dog as it was put to sleep.

[Steve]

If they started actually doing some work in enforcement they would make more than enough off fines and what they save in management to pay wages.

Perhaps what it needs is a private company to take up the policing process and allowing them to keep the fines they hand out on behalf of council - the voters wouldnt like this though and at the end of the day it really is about votes . Put laws in place to make the activists and everyone who wants some action feel that they are being heard and that new laws will help but do nothing about enforcement - keeps everyone happy and doesn't loose you any votes.