Friday 18 September

CRC Dog Audit continuing

Cairns Regional Council officers are continuing a systematic dog audit of the entire Cairns Regional area to ensure all dogs are properly registered.
To date 18,186 properties have been inspected with 2413 notices issued.  2,435 dogs have been registered.

Mayor Val Schier said if residents have “beware of the dog” signs or other signs indicating the presence of a dog, officers would assume there was a dog on the premises.   “If people have received a notice to register a dog by mistake then they should contact Customer Service to rectify the situation,” Councillor Schier said.

Manager Environmental Assessment, Laurie Phipps said “the notice that is issued is not a notice to pay a fine; it is a notification reminding the dog owner to register the pet”.

“No fines have been issued by officers during the current audit program,” Mr Phipps said.

The audit aims to ensure dog owners are keeping their pets in line with Council’s animal management regulations.   It will assist in updating dog registrations, and to confirm compliance with local laws regarding the number of dogs kept on premises.

Where a dog remains unregistered, Council’s Local Laws officers will conduct a follow-up inspection after the 7 day notice period.  
Continued failure to register a dog may lead to an infringement notice being issued against the owner.

The audit is an important part of Council’s animal control program and will enable it to better manage the problem of unregistered dogs across the region.