Dog threat registered

Andrew Mathieson
GEELONG’S council has registered 44 “dangerous” dogs so far this year as State Government prepares new laws giving by-laws officers more power to crack down on rogue canines.
According to council figures, dangerous dogs were responsible for 65 attacks between January and the end of June.
More than 80 per cent of the registered dangerous dogs had attacked other animals.
A further two incidents were at the residences of owners with dogs trained to attack, council said.
State Government is debating in parliament a proposed Dangerous Dogs Bill that would compel councils to play a greater role in preventing and addressing dog attacks. The bill could lead to employment of additional staff to handle dangerous dogs.
City Hall has existing staff including qualified dog rangers as well as procedures including enforced registration and optional micro-chipping of pets.
The state opposition fears councils like Geelong were already struggling to cope with an unregistered dog rate of 40 per cent.
Shadow agriculture minister Peter Walsh said councils would need more support to implement the proposed dog laws.
“Many councils aren’t sufficiently resourced to enforce these new laws as well,” he said.
“The responsibility will fall on local government to employ more authorised officers and rangers needed to make sure dogs are registered.
“The legislation will also place greater onus on owners of some breeds to register them as dangerous, menacing and restricted breeds.”
Monash University research has found that unregistered dogs are more likely to be involved in attacks.
City of Greater Geelong local laws acting manager Adrian Holbrook said council applied a number of conditions on owners of “dangerous” dogs, which included 34 guard dogs around Geelong.
“One of the conditions is that the dog must be kept in a secure yard, with council inspections of the property made every 12 months to ensure the enclosure continues to conform with stringent safety requirements,” he said.