The Act provides that an authorised officer may seize a dog that is subject to a notice of intention to declare the dog to be a dangerous or menacing dog, if the dog is not microchipped and lifetime registered at the time the Notice of Intention is issued.

If you fail to meet the control requirements for proposed dangerous or menacing dogs, you may be issued with a penalty notice.

You have 7 days from the date of issue of the Notice of Intention to lodge an objection with your local council. You may provide evidence in support of your objection which may include a behavioural assessment from a professional behavioural assessor. Your local council must consider your objection before making the decision whether or not to declare your dog a dangerous or menacing dog.

Your local council or the Office of Local Government do NOT recommend or provide contact details of professional behavioural assessors to owners issued with a Notice of Intention to declare a dog a dangerous or menacing dog.

To locate a professional behavioural assessor contact your local Vet for advice or refer to your local Yellow Pages.

It is also an offence to sell, advertise for sale, give away or transfer ownership of a proposed dangerous or menacing dog.

If you own a dog that has been declared dangerous, you must ensure that:

•  your dog is microchipped and lifetime registered
• your dog is desexed (or permanently sterilised)
• you have a valid annual permit for the dog
• your dog is not, at any time, left in the sole charge of a person under the age of 18 years
• your dog is contained in an enclosure that meets the requirements of clause 24 of the Companion Animals Regulation 2018 when on the premises where it is ordinarily kept. You must also obtain a certificate of compliance from your local council, certifying that the enclosure meets the regulatory requirements
• you prominently display dangerous dog warning signs on the premises where your dog is ordinarily kept
• your dog wears a prescribed collar at all times
• your dog wears a muzzle and is securely leashed at all times when outside the enclosure where it is ordinarily kept. If your dog has been declared as a dangerous dog because it is being kept or used for hunting, it is exempt from the requirements to be muzzled and securely leashed when outside the enclosure where ordinarily kept when it is actually hunting
• you notify the local council for the area in which you intend to keep your dog, if this council area is different to the council area where your dog was kept when it was declared dangerous.
• you notify the local council for the area in which your dog is ordinarily kept:
  • if the location (within the same council area) at which your dog is ordinarily kept changes as soon as practicable after the change of location
  • if your dog, with or without provocation, attacks or injures a person or animal, other than vermin (must notify within 24 hours of the attack or injury). It is an offence, under the Companion Animals Act 1998, to encourage a declared dangerous dog to attack a person or animal
  • if your dog cannot be found (must notify within 24 hours of your dog’s absence first being noticed)
  • if your dog dies (must notify as soon as practicable after your dog’s death).
• you do not transfer ownership of your dog. It is also an offence to accept ownership of a dangerous dog
• you do not sell (sell includes give away) your dog or advertise it for sale.

For more information contact your local council.

If you fail to comply with these requirements, you may be issued with a penalty notice and/or liable for imprisonment and your dog may, under certain circumstances, be seized and destroyed.

The same control requirements apply to a declared menacing dog as those which apply to a declared dangerous dog, with the exception of the enclosure requirement, which is as follows for a declared menacing dog:

During any period that the menacing dog is on property on which the dog is ordinarily kept, and is not under the effective control of a person of or above the age of 18 years, the dog must be enclosed in a manner that is sufficient to restrain the dog and prevent a child from having access to the dog.

You must inform the local council, for the area you intend keeping your declared dangerous or menacing dog, that you will be keeping your dog in its area. This enables the local council to ensure that you will comply with all control requirements for declared dangerous or menacing dogs.

In the case of a declared dangerous dog, this also enables the council to issue you with a certificate of compliance, certifying that your dog’s enclosure meets regulatory requirements. For further information on control requirements, refer to ‘What control requirements you must comply with as the owner of a declared dangerous dog.’ section above.

After that location has changed, you must inform the local council for the area your dog has, until now been ordinarily kept, that your dog is now being kept in a different council area.

If you own a declared dangerous or menacing dog and the location at which your dog is ordinarily kept has changed, you must inform the local council, for the area your dog has, until now, been ordinarily kept (even if the location at which your dog is now ordinarily kept is in the same council area). You must do this as soon as practicable after the change of location using a Change of Owner/Details (C3A) form or a Change of Address Notice (C3C).

This enables the local council to ensure that you are complying with control requirements for declared dangerous or menacing dogs. In the case of a declared dangerous dog, this also enables the council to issue you with a certificate of compliance, certifying that your dog’s enclosure meets regulatory requirements.

If you own a declared dangerous or menacing dog and it is missing, you must inform the local council, for the area your dog is ordinarily kept, within 24 hours of your dog’s absence first being noticed.

If you own a declared dangerous or menacing dog and it dies, you must inform the local council, for the area your dog has ordinarily been kept, as soon as practicable after your dog’s death.