My Account
Compulsory Council registration of cats, along the same lines as dogs, is one of the issues that was raised by local boards as Auckland Council reviews its 2015 Animal Management Bylaw.
Other cat controls discussed in the informal local board feedback include restricting the number of cats a person can own, compulsory de-sexing and microchipping, and a cat curfew.
Local boards agreed that any regulatory response would need to match the scale of the issue, be cost-effective and have measurable effects on reducing nuisance.
This bylaw does not address dogs, which are managed through separate bylaws, but instead covers issues associated with all other domestic animals and livestock.
The scope includes considering controls over bee keeping, particularly in urban backyards, as well as looking at nuisance issues and management of birds, rabbits, horses and stock.
A summary of the feedback was put before the Hibiscus & Bays Local Board at last month’s meeting.
Hibiscus & Bays Local Board members asked staff to note the need for clear procedures to clean up any fouling from horses on beaches and reserves, to consider the suitability of keeping bees in residential areas and the impact of cats on environmentally sensitive areas such as Shakespear Regional Park.
However, just because Council reviews its bylaws every five years, does not mean it will necessarily make any changes. After seeking this feedback, it can opt to keep the bylaw as it is.
Council staff will present their findings and options to the Regulatory Committee early next year, at which time they will also seek the committee’s direction as to whether the bylaw needs amendments.
The matter will come back to local boards for more feedback next year.
