AUSTRALIAN CAPITAL TERRITORY

DOGS REGISTRATION ORDINANCE 1967

Explanatory Memorandum

No. 30 of 1967

	Special provisions relating to guide dogs for the blind have, under the Dogs Registration Ordinance 1967, been included in the Australian Capital Territory legislation.  In view of the expenses normally incurred by the owner of a guide dog (or the relevant voluntary society) in training the dog and the limited employment opportunities for a blind person, it has been decided that no fee should be payable by a blind keeper for the registration of his guide dog.  Should the dog later be transferred to a non-blind owner, no such exemption is extended to the new owner.  As a means of identification, a special disc is to be issued for each guide dog registered.

	Under the present legislation, the Registrar decides what maintenance costs must be paid before the owner can reclaim his dog.  A survey has revealed that the cost of running the dog-catching service and the dog pound is approximately one dollar daily for each dog.  The new Ordinance therefore provides that this amount must be paid by the owners.

	Existing penalty provisions for not registering a dog do not provide sufficient deterrent in that the owner of an unregistered dog found wandering at large pays less than does the owner of a registered dog.  The penalty for keeping an unregistered dog has therefore been raised from four dollars to twenty dollars, but, at the same time, the minor penalty of payment of twice the registration fee before re-claiming an unregistered dog has been cancelled.

   J.D.A
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 Minister’s Initials