Dog Control Act 2000 (Tas)

Dog Control Act 2000

An Act to provide for the control and management of dogs [Royal Assent 20 December 2000]

Be it enacted by His Excellency the Governor of Tasmania, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Council and House of Assembly, in Parliament assembled, as follows:

PART 1 - Preliminary

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Dog Control Act 2000 .

2. Commencement This Act commences on a day to be proclaimed.

3. Interpretation In this Act – animal means any live vertebrate animal other than a human being; appropriate fee, in relation to a fee, means a fee determined by the council under section 80 ; approved means approved by the Director; at large means at large as referred to in section 5 ; attack includes bite, menace or harass; authorised person means – (a) a police officer; or (b) a general manager; or (c) a person appointed by a general manager to be an authorised person; or (d) a person who is a ranger under the Nature Conservation Act 2002 ; or (da) a person who is a ranger under the National Parks and Reserves Management Act 2002 ; or (e) a person appointed as a bailiff of Crown lands under the Crown Lands Act 1976 ; built-up area means an area in which – (a) there are buildings on land next to the road; and (b) there is street lighting at intervals not over 100 metres for a distance of at least 500 metres or, if the road is shorter than 500 metres, for the whole road; collar means a collar of leather or other durable material; complaint means a complaint referred to in section 47 ; dangerous dog means a dog declared to be dangerous under section 29 or 30 ; declared area means an area declared under Division 2 of Part 3 ; de-sex means to render permanently incapable of reproduction; Director means the Director of Local Government; dog means an animal of the species Canis familiaris or Canis familiaris dingo; effective control means – (a) in the case of a dog that is not a greyhound, dangerous dog or restricted breed dog, effective control as referred to in section 4 ; and (b) in the case of a greyhound, effective control as referred to in section 18 ; and (c) in the case of a dangerous dog or restricted breed dog, effective control as referred to in section 32 ; exercise area means an area declared under section 20 ; general manager means the general manager of a council appointed under the Local Government Act 1993 ; guard dog means a dog used to guard premises that are not residential premises; guide dog means – (a) a guide dog as defined by the Guide Dogs and Hearing Dogs Act 1967 ; or (b) a dog training to be a guide dog; hearing dog means – (a) a hearing dog as defined by the Guide Dogs and Hearing Dogs Act 1967 ; and (b) a dog training to be a hearing dog; hunting dog means a dog used principally for hunting; infringement notice means a notice referred to in Division 2 of Part 4 ; laceration means a wound caused by – (a) the tearing of body tissue; or (b) multiple punctures caused by more than one bite from a dog; lead means a lead, leash, cord or chain of sufficient strength to restrain a dog; licence means a licence to keep on premises – (a) more than 2 dogs over the age of 6 months; or (b) more than 4 working dogs over the age of 6 months; microchip number, in relation to a dog, means the unique identifying number associated with an approved microchip implanted in the dog; occupier, in relation to premises, includes a person who has, or is entitled to, possession or control of the premises; owner of a dog means a person referred to in section 6 ; pound means a pound established under the Local Government Act 1993 ; premises includes land or any part of any premises or land and includes private premises and a public place; private premises means premises that are not a public place; prohibited area means an area declared under section 22 ; public notice means a notice published in a daily newspaper; public place means – (a) a public place as defined by the Police Offences Act 1935 ; and (b) a road; and (c) a road-related area; register means a register kept under section 15 ; registered dog means a dog registered under this Act; registration disc means a disc or tag referred to in section 10(1) ; residential premises means any premises lawfully used as a residence; restricted area means an area declared under section 23 ; restricted breed dog means a dog declared to be a restricted breed dog under section 29A ; road means – (a) an area that is developed for, or has as one of its main uses, the driving or riding of motor vehicles and is open to, or used by, the public; and (b) a part of the kerb; and (c) an unsealed part of a sealed road; road-related area means – (a) an area that divides a road; or (b) a footpath or nature strip adjacent to a road; or (c) a footpath or track that – (i) is not a road; and (ii) is designed for use by cyclists or pedestrians; and (iii) is open to the public; serious injury means – (a) an injury requiring medical or veterinary attention in the nature of – (i) a broken bone; or (ii) a laceration; or (iii) a partial or total loss of sensation or function in a part of the body; or (b) an injury requiring medical or cosmetic surgery; shopping centre means a collection of shops in an enclosed area covered by a roof or forming a courtyard or square, excluding any area provided for the parking of vehicles; training area means an area declared under section 21 ; tranquilliser device means any device that inserts a measured dosage of tranquillising drug into the body of an animal; trialling means – (a) agility trialling, endurance trialling, herding trialling, lure coursing trialling, obedience trialling, retrieving trialling and tracking trialling; and (b) any other event in which dogs, and persons in charge of those dogs, are engaged in competition in respect of dog behaviours; veterinary surgeon means a person registered as a veterinary surgeon under the Veterinary Surgeons Act 1987 ; working day means a day on which the public office of a council is open for business; working dog means a dog used principally for – (a) droving or tending livestock; or (b) detecting illegal substances; or (c) searching, tracking or rescuing; or (d) working with police officers.