Everything You Need to Know about New Desexing Laws

All South Australian pet owners should be aware that, as of July 1^st this year, all dogs and cats without a specific exemption will need to be desexed and microchipped by the age of six months.

These new desexing laws may sound like a draconian requirement. However,  it’s something that the Dog and Cat Management Board has decided is necessary. The new laws form part of an ongoing program to bring under control the problem of unwanted kittens and puppies and to address the issue of puppy farmers. Although animal shelters such as the Animal Welfare League try their best to rehome unwanted pets, it’s a sad fact that shelters euthanase many dogs and cats , each year, for lack of a home.

In our minds, this brings up a few issues I’d like to bring to your attention, as follows.

Any dogs or cats born on or after 1^st July 2018 must be desexed by the age of six months at the latest, unless exempted

• If purchased from a breeder, the desexing must be performed within 28 days of purchase
• Desexing exemptions include working livestock dogs, racing greyhounds, breeding animals and those animals deemed a high surgical risk.
  • For surgical risk exemptions you’ll need a veterinary certificate as evidence
• We believe that we may be able to provide temporary exemptions for giant breed dogs which take longer to mature. This needs clarification, however
• The definition of ‘working dog’ is also a bit hazy but we suspect this applies to farm dogs specifically

Pets must be microchipped by 12 weeks of age

• Again, if purchased from a breeder, this deadline changes to ‘point of sale’. All purebred breeders already microchip pups and kittens prior to sale. This will now apply to any crossbred animals as well. In other words, if you want to sell pups or kittens, you’ll have to microchip them first.

The new desexing laws do not apply to pets born prior to 1^st July

• Although you’ll still need to register your pet, there is no requirement for you to comply with the new regulations on desexing
• Nonetheless, desexing of pets is something we routinely recommendl. We feel that there are all sorts of good reasons to do this
• Unfortunately, this exemption does not apply to microchipping – all pets, young or old, must be microchipped by July 1st this year!

If you wish to keep your pet for breeding, you will need to register yourself as a breeder with the Dog and Cat Management Board

• This applies to all pets, not just purebred dogs or cats
• Although this is not a complex process, it must be done within the timelines I’ve already described. As a result, you’ll need to make your mind up early
• We understand that the cost will be approximately $75 to register. This may be a bit cheaper if you’re a member of an affiliate body such as DogsSA or  Feline Assocation of SA
  • I suspect that neither of these bodies is likely to accept anything other than purebred breeders on their membership list.
• All breeders will have to follow industry standards and guidelines.  This includes providing a ‘Breeder Registration Number’ when advertising pups or kittens for sale.

All pets will need to be registered through a new online system, ‘Dog and Cat Online (DACO)’. This  will replace local council registration.

• As is currently the case, annual renewal will be required. Pets will be issued with a ‘permanent’ tag which will stay with your pet for life
  • You’ll be able to replace this tag (it’s coloured grey!) with one of your own design, if you prefer . This must contain all of the relevant information. We can help with this, if you like
  • A portion of the annual registration fees will be re-distributed to local councils. This is used to help fund their dog and cat management responsibilties
• Evidence of microchipping and desexing (and behaviour training, if your council includes this) will be required
• DACO will also act as the official state register for breeders
• Presumably, if you move interstate, you’ll need to transfer your details to the relevant registry there.

From our point of view, there are upsides and downsides to the new system.

As already mentioned, we see far too many pups and kittens surrendered to animal shelters. Many of these pets cannot be rehomed and so are put to sleep. Likewise, puppy farming is something we’d love to see stamped out. The conditions in which these poor breeding animals are kept can be pretty appalling.

We have many delightful patients who have been the result of ‘backyard breeding’. It will be a great shame if this source of new pets dries up. In most cases, it’s the better-natured pets that are bred. Inevitably, there will be additional pressure on purebred breeders to produce more pups and kittens and this concerns me. We already see health issues cropping up in some ‘fashionable’ breeds. This is largely due to the pressures of supply and demand.

As a minor issue, we’ll be burdened with an additional administrative task in that we have to report desexings and microchips to DACO. We already act as tax collectors (GST) for the government. This is just one more piece of bureaucracy we’ll have to comply with!

Unfortunately, we have no control over the new regulations. Just like anyone else, we’ll have to wait and see how this all turns out. I’ve no doubt there will be some teething problems initially. Hopefully it will all settle down quickly and achieve the desired results.

If you’d like to know more about any of this, I’d love to hear from you. Please feel free to call on 8522 3500 or contact me directly at d.macphail@gawlervets.com.au.

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