Cats
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Council encourages all owners to be responsible for their cats. As owners it is recommended that you provide adequate housing and food along with using responsible breeding practices.
If your cat causes a nuisance to your neighbours by persistently making noise, fouling their yard or attacking animals you can be issued with a Nuisance Cat Order and an infringement notice.
Responsible cat ownership
All cat owners have a responsibility to their cat, their community and the environment.
Cats can be declared a nuisance if they:
- attack native wildlife
- destroy other peoples property
- cause too much noise.
10 essential tips for cat owners
- Do not allow your cat to roam.
- Ensure your cat wears a collar and bell.
- Avoid unwanted kittens, have your cat desexed.
- Have new cats registered and microchipped after 1 July 1999.
- Do not allow your cat out at night.
- Ask your adjoining owners if your cat causes any nuisance problems, and correct them.
- Do not allow your cat to enter local bushland or attack native wildlife.
- Keep your cat healthy and happy.
- Avoid nuisance problems caused by boredom.
- Make sure you really want a cat and are prepared to care of it before acquiring one.
Should I desex my cat?
All owners are encouraged to desex their cat. The cost of registration is less for a desexed animal, especially for pensioners.
- Early desexing eliminates the risk of serious diseases including reproductive cancers.
- Desexed cats grow up cleaner, healthier, quieter and more home loving.
- Desexing significantly reduces antisocial behaviour such as fighting and spraying.
- Desexed cats are less aggressive than entire cats.
What to do if you find a cat
- Check for identification/registration tag - if the cat is wearing a name tag, phone the owner.
- Ask around the neighbourhood to see if anyone has lost a cat.
- Contact the local veterinary clinics to have the cat scanned for a microchip.
- Contact Council so we can take the cat to be scanned for a microchip and reunited with its owner.
Keeping cats indoors
There are very good reasons to keep your cat inside at night:
- all cats hunt, regardless of how well fed they are - cats usually hunt at night
- most cat fights occur at night
- most vehicle accidents involving cats occur at night
- cats can also cause considerable damage to the environment if allowed to roam.
Cats should never be fed until it is time for them to be confined. Once you invite them in to be fed, keep them in for the night. For those who don't like cats indoors at all then the garden shed or garage is a suitable alternative for confinement.
What you can do
Keep your cats indoors to prevent roaming and increase their life expectancy. Cats sleep up to 20 hours a day so provide companionship and entertainment for waking hours.
- Desex your cat. De-sexed cats typically live longer and wander, fight and spray-mark territory less than undesexed cats.
- Have a scratching post, shelves, boxes and toys to keep your cats amused. Cats love a window seat.
- Provide a clean litter tray.
- Consider having an outdoor enclosure as this protects your cat and native wildlife too.
- Cats are prohibited from all Wildlife Protection Areas.