Frequently Asked Questions

Every year Council picks up the same complaints and comments regarding dog registration fees so this FAQ explains why that little piece of plastic dog owners purchase for (see fees and charges), costs what it does.

The Dog Registration fee supports;

• Fit-for-purpose vehicles - patrols and response, fuel, maintenance, branding and equipping to ensure Officers can ensure public safety.
• Heavy duty, fit-for-purpose protective uniforms for a professional look.
• Trained Officers familiar with relevant legislation.
• Negotiation of voluntary handovers of dogs costs, but it's better than potential expensive court costs!
• Property visits for every complaint to educate, investigate and/or uplift.
• Dog poo bag dispenser and free bags around the district - including maintenance and filling.
• Education and support for people struggling to properly care for their dog.
• Door to door programme in August looking for known registered dogs that have not yet renewed their registration.
• Pound management - keeping it clean and hygienic, feeding, watering the dogs twice daily, seven days a week; rotating dogs in the exercise yards and walking the dogs.
• Public, and dog owner, safety - by getting roaming and aggressive dogs off the streets. $150! That's an expensive piece of plastic or is it
• Welfare - because the SPCA went into recession (now active again, which is great news), our staff field well over 100 calls a year from concerned residents about 'the dog next door'. These are investigated and education support provided. If the situation doesn't improve, the dog is uplifted and held either for seven days or longer depending on the dog's behaviour and temperament. The team put a huge amount of time and effort into animal welfare because animal cruelty is distressing for people.
• Adopt a dog programme - all dogs are desexed, microchipped and vet checked so that when the dog is adopted it is unable to have (potentially unwanted) puppies, is legally microchipped and healthy. Many dogs spend longer than seven days in the pound too. Our team put time and effort into assessing dogs for suitability for rehoming. Indeed other members of staff offer to walk the dogs during their lunch breaks too.

In addition:

• Officers are on call 24/7 to ensure public safety - largely around dog attacks, aggression and stock on roads.
• The service isn't just about dogs. The team enforce our Bees, Poultry and Animal Bylaw which covers a range of animals, mostly around stock on roads that need to be dealt to within an hour as a matter of serious public safety. And the team enforce various other bylaws like the Public Places bylaw, do parking infringements and deal with derelict vehicles. This is all covered in the cost of the service (rates component too).

But wait there's more

• Discounted Selected Owner Policy (or SOP) - apply between 1 March and 31 May. Officers will inspect your property, review your file to check history and a few other criteria. SOP is half of the standard fee. SOP is a privilege not a right.
• The proportion of dangerous or menacing dogs in our district in comparison to total dogs is high. Managing dangerous dogs is essential to public safety, the safety of other dogs and their owners.
• Automatic payment option - to spread payments throughout the year (means additional administrative costs).
• Credit in rates account - this can be transferred to your dog account.

So you see there's much much more to the Animal and Compliance Service than meets the eye

More on these fees

• Our Council has one of the highest dog registration fees in the country. We acknowledge that. There are several reasons for this and many are outlined above.
• In a nutshell, we deliver a higher level of service to our community than many other councils.
• Some councils for instance don't investigate door to door every complaint - they simply write letters or do nothing.
• Some councils don't put time and effort into rehoming suitable dogs that have been found or handed over and no owner has claimed them - they simply wait the seven days under the law and then euthanize the dog.
• Some councils don't split the service into 60% to users (ie, dog owners) and 40% on rates - they put more of the cost of the service on to rates, which means ratepayers who don't have dogs pay a larger proportion than what they do in our district.

Owning a dog

And lastly owning a dog comes with responsibilities and costs. You have to feed it, water it, exercise it, vaccinate it, provide a kennel, love, hugs, play and the odd treat. Under the law you also have to register it - this costs money - and is a dog owners' responsibility. Simply put, owning a dog comes with costs - careful consideration of all costs and responsibilities is essential before getting a dog.