Council's hands remain "tied" when it comes to roaming cats, says Mayor Phyllis Miller, who's expressed her disappointment following a report from a NSW Parliamentary Inquiry into the management of cat populations.
Mayor Miller said the Upper House inquiry missed an opportunity by not backing enforceable cat containment policies for councils.
“Councils are on the frontline, trying to improve animal welfare and environmental protection," she said.
"But without having the option to choose enforceable containment, our hands are tied when cats are left to roam, become predators or just cause a general nuisance.
“We need mandatory cat containment measures and they must be accompanied by adequate funding and resources so that councils can enforce them.
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“Australians have adapted to the legal requirement to keep dogs confined to residential premises. Local government seeks the same provision for cats."
Mayor Miller also pointed to the need for better education of cat owners and carers to reduce the roaming of cats, particularly at night.
“Cats simply need to be kept indoors at night,” Mayor Miller said.
“As a cat owner myself, I know how important this is – not only to protect native fauna but also to protect my pet! It’s really not that hard and cat owners need to be better at getting on board."
Mayor Miller acknowledged the Committee’s recognition of the urgent need for stronger cat management strategies, including funding for free and subsidised desexing, along with statewide education and behaviour-change programs.
“Those measures are welcome and essential," she said.
"But effective management requires a holistic approach - statewide education, desexing, containment, trapping, and adequate funding for councils, welfare groups and rehoming organisations.
"To exclude containment is to ignore one of the most powerful tools we have."
The NSW Government is also conducting a review of the Companion Animals Act and Local Government NSW, of which Mayor Miller is currently president, will continue to advocate strongly for councils to be able to adopt these policies.
“The Government must step in and deliver the legislative tools and also the funds and resources that councils need to effectively manage this problem,” Mayor Miller said.
In its inquiry submission, LGNSW highlighted the impact of cats on Australian biodiversity.
The submission noted that cats had already driven 27 species to extinction since colonisation and threaten at least 124 more species with the same fate.
The report's 10 recommendations address multiple aspects of cat management, including the importance of desexing and behaviour change programs to encourage responsible cat ownership and reduce the overpopulation of cats.
"It is clear that the overpopulation of cats has serious impacts in New South Wales and that effective cat management strategies are urgently required," Chair of the Animal Welfare Committee Emma Hurst MLC said.
"However, it is important that cat management programs are underpinned by sound scientific evidence to ensure that initiatives are effective and produce the desired outcomes."
Ms Hurst said the committee found there wasn't satisfactory evidence that containment and curfew laws would be effective.
"While the committee recognises that there are benefits to voluntary cat containment, the potential negative consequences of mandatory or punitive cat containment laws are likely to make them unworkable in New South Wales at present," she said.
"It was apparent to the committee that there is currently insufficient evidence that mandatory cat containment and cat curfew laws are effective, and in fact they could have adverse consequences including on the costs imposed on councils and the local community during a cost of living crisis, and significant increases in euthanasia rates.
"The committee therefore encourages the use of education and behaviour change programs to foster the voluntary adoption of cat containment within the community."
The findings in the report included:
- There is an urgent need to implement cat management strategies in NSW to address the overpopulation of cats in NSW, both in urban environments and in the wild
- Key threats to wildlife in NSW include not only introduced species, but also habitat destruction and fragmentation, and a holistic approach to native animals is required
- Desexing programs were broadly supported by the large majority of inquiry participants, and have been proved to be an effective cat management strategy
- That non-for-profit cat rescues and volunteers have played a critical and leading role in the desexing and rehoming of cats in NSW
- Educational and behaviour change programs which encourage and support people to voluntarily keep cats indoors were supported by a majority of inquiry participants, and there is some early positive evidence to support the effectiveness of such programs
- There is insufficient evidence that mandatory cat containment laws or cat curfews at a state or local government level are effective in reducing the number of free roaming cats and therefore reducing impacts on wildlife
- Mandatory cat containment laws are likely to create equity issues and have a disproportionate impact on people from lower socio-economic backgrounds and First Nations communities
- The killing of healthy cats has a severe impact on the mental health and wellbeing of pound, shelter, veterinary and rescue staff and volunteers
- NSW may not be ready to adopt mandatory cat containment laws, whether these laws are statewide or at a local government level
- NSW Government and councils should manage cats in a way that supports the health and wellbing of people, animals and the environment
