By Cam Lucadou-Wells
A 24-7 cat curfew making it illegal for cats to stray out of people’s yards is being floated by Greater Dandenong Council.
An online survey is asking respondents whether they support a curfew that either 24/7 or night only.
It’s in response to an “overpopulation” of feral and stray cats creating a nuisance and slaying wildlife, with 700 felines impounded by the council each year.
Only about 7 per cent of the impounds are reclaimed by the owner.
Mayor Eden Foster said the council is left responsible for the costs of caring for the unclaimed 93 per cent, equating to about $216,000 a year.
“We need to look at other ways to decrease this cost to Council and protect our environment.”
Other councils with a cat curfew include Bayside, Darebin, Knox, Monash, Whitehorse and Yarra Ranges.
Cr Rhonda Garad, a cat owner herself, said anything less than a 24-7 curfew was not effective.
But the council should provide information on how to confine cats at home, she said.
Many owners could not afford to build outdoor enclosures for their pet to roam. And locking outdoor-loving cats inside seemed “cruel”.
“The council has a responsibility to help. I’d like to see practical support for people.”
A 2022 report stated the council’s dismal cat registration rate was a barrier to the cat curfew being effective, it stated.
But Cr Garad said a “carrot and stick” approach could lead to more registrations and microchipping.
“We can say if we pick your cat up, we need it microchipped to identify it and get it back.”
As of January 2021, there were about 3500 registered cats – but that’s estimated to be only 15 per cent of the cat population in Greater Dandenong.
“Council records clearly indicate that there is an overpopulation of cats and that in the main these are un-owned ‘wild’ animals that can never be domesticated,” the council report stated.
In the past four years, cat registrations have increased by 7 per cent.
But complaints about wandering cats have risen 10 per cent since 2017, to more than 600 last year. They make up 46 per cent of complaints to the council’s rangers.
According to the council, more than half of the trapped cats are euthanized due to their “wild or semi-wild temperaments”.
Australian Animal Protection Society’s shelter in Keysborough took in about 500 stray cats last year.
A spokesperson said the vast majority were successfully rehomed. Just 10 were euthanised, mainly due to illness rather than behaviour.
“This is a fantastic outcome, as euthanasia is only used for illness and animals that put staff and the community at risk. And there is not many of those.”
Based on the council’s survey findings, a cat curfew could be introduced this year.
The online survey closes on Friday 31 March, 5pm.
Details: greaterdandenong.vic.gov.au/have-your-say
