Dog Control Bylaw 2023 Te Ture ā-Rōhe mō ngā Kaupapa Kurī
This bylaw is the Dog Control Bylaw 2023 Te Ture ā-Rōhe mō ngā Kaupapa Kurī.
2 Explanatory notes boxes
Text in boxes headed ‘Explanatory notes’ in this bylaw is included for information purposes only, and –
(a) does not form part of this bylaw; and
(b) cannot be considered in the interpretation or application of a provision of this bylaw; and
(c) may be inserted, amended or removed without any formality.
This bylaw comes into force on 18 May 2023.
This bylaw applies to the district of the Thames-Coromandel District Council as defined in the Local Government (Waikato Region) Reorganisation Order 1989, Gazette 1989, p 2460.
Part 1: Preliminary provisions
(1) The purpose of this bylaw is to provide adequate opportunities to fulfil the exercise, recreational and socialisation needs of dogs and their Owners while minimising any danger, distress, or nuisance caused by dogs.
(2) This bylaw gives Council legal powers to implement the Thames-Coromandel District Council Policy on Dogs Kaupapa mō ngā Kurī.
In this bylaw, unless the context requires otherwise:
Beach means the foreshore and any adjacent area that can reasonably be considered part of the beach environment including areas of sand, pebbles, shingle, dunes or coastal vegetation, but not including reserves or parks that are adjacent to the beach. For clarification, estuary areas that fit this definition are considered a beach under this bylaw.
Control in relation to a dog, means that the Owner is able to obtain an immediate and desired response from the dog by use of a leash, voice commands, hand signals, whistles or other effective means so that no dog can cause nuisance or danger to any person or other animal and cannot enter or interfere with private property and includes the physical ability to restrain all dogs in a person’s possession.
Council means the governing body of the Thames-Coromandel District Council, or any person delegated to act on its behalf.
Holiday Weekend means any weekend which immediately precedes or follows a public holiday, and includes any public holiday as defined in the Holidays Act 2003 excluding weekends adjoining King’s Birthday and Matariki.
King’s Birthday means the birthday of the reigning Sovereign, observed on the first Monday in June, as defined in the Holidays Act 2003.
Matariki means the day on which a public holiday is observed to acknowledge Matariki (Te Rā Aro ki a Matariki/Matariki Observance Day) as defined in the Holidays Act 2003.
Owner has the same meaning as defined in section 2 of the Dog Control Act 1996.
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As at 28 October 2021, the Dog Control Act 1996 defines ‘Owner’ as:
in relation to any dog, means every person who—
a) owns the dog; or
b) has the dog in his or her possession, whether the dog is at large or in confinement, otherwise than for a period not exceeding 72 hours for the purpose of preventing the dog causing injury, damage, or distress, or for the sole purpose of restoring a lost dog to its Owner; or
c) the parent or guardian of a person under the age of 16 years who—
i) is the Owner of the dog pursuant to paragraph (a) or paragraph (b); and
ii) is a member of the parent or guardian’s household living with and dependent on the parent or guardian;—
but does not include any person who has seized or taken custody of the dog under this Act or the Animal Welfare Act 1999 or the National Parks Act 1980 or the Te Urewera Act 2014 or the Conservation Act 1987 or any order made under this Act or the Animal Welfare Act 1999
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Premises means any land, dwelling, storehouse, warehouse, shop, cellar, yard, building, or part of the same, or enclosed space separately occupied. All lands, buildings, and places adjoining each other and occupied together are deemed to be the same premises.
Playground means an outdoor area developed or marked out as a playground that contains children's play equipment or objects.
Public Place has the same meaning as defined in section 2 of the Dog Control Act 1996.
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As at 28 October 2021, the Dog Control Act 1996 defines ‘Public Place’ as:
(a) means a place that, at any material time, is open to or is being used by the public, whether free or on payment of a charge, and whether any Owner or occupier of the place is lawfully entitled to exclude or eject any person from that place; and
(b) includes any aircraft, hovercraft, ship or ferry or other vessel, train, or vehicle carrying or available to carry passengers for reward
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Sports Surface includes any area developed or marked out as a sports field (including those used for soccer or rugby for example), artificial turf (including those used for hockey for example), court (including those used for netball or tennis for example), archery range or skateboard park.
Working Dog has the same meaning as defined in section 2 of the Dog Control Act 1996.
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As at 28 October 2021, the Dog Control Act 1996 defines ‘Working Dog’ as:
(a) any disability assist dog:
(i) kept by the Police or any constable, the New Zealand Customs Service, the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, the Ministry of Fisheries, or the Ministry of Defence, or any officer or employee of any such department of State solely or principally for the purposes of carrying out the functions, powers, and duties of the Police or the department of State or that constable, officer, or employee; or
(ii) kept solely or principally for the purposes of herding or driving stock; or
(iii) kept by the Department of Conservation or any officer or employee of that department solely or principally for the purposes of carrying out the functions, duties, and powers of that department; or
(iv) kept solely or principally for the purposes of destroying pests or pest agents under any pest management plan under the Biosecurity Act 1993; or
(iva) kept by the Department of Corrections or any officer or employee of that department solely or principally for the purposes of carrying out the functions, duties, and powers of that department; or
(ivb) kept by the Aviation Security Service established under section 72B(2) (ca) of the Civil Aviation Act 1990, or any officer or employee of that service solely or principally for the purposes of carrying out the functions, duties, and powers of that service; or
(ivc) certified for use by the Director of Civil Defence Emergency Management for the purposes of carrying out the functions, duties, and powers conferred by the Civil Defence Emergency Management Act 2002; or
(v) owned by a property guard as defined in section 9 of the Private Security Personnel and Private Investigators Act 2010 or a property guard employee as defined in section 17 of that Act, and kept solely or principally for the purpose of doing the things specified in section 9(1) (a) to (c) of that Act; or
(vi) declared by resolution of the territorial authority to be a Working Dog for the purposes of this Act, or any dog of a class so declared by the authority, being a dog owned by any class of persons specified in the resolution and kept solely or principally for the purposes specified in the resolution
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(2) The Legislation Act 2019 applies to this bylaw.
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This means that words or phrases used in this bylaw that are defined in the Legislation Act 2019 have the meanings given in that Act. For example, section 13 of that Act defines “person” as "includes a corporation sole, a body corporate, and an unincorporated body".
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Part 2: Dogs in Public Places
The restrictions provided for in clauses 8(2) and 9 of this bylaw do not apply in respect of Working Dogs when working, or any registered dogs taking part in a dog obedience class, exercise or a competition organised by a club or association that has obtained the prior written consent of Council.
8 Control of dogs in Public Places (on and off leash)
(1) The Owner of any dog must ensure that the dog is under Control at all times and must prevent the dog from wandering or remaining free in any Public Place.
(2) Except as provided in Schedule 1 of this bylaw, the Owner of any dog in any Public Place must secure the dog by an effective leash or similar which keeps the dog under continuous Control.
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As per section 54A of the Dog Control Act 1996, all dog Owners are required to carry a leash at all times regardless of the provisions of this Bylaw. This section does not apply to the Owner of a Working Dog in relation to the Working Dog.
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The Owner of any dog must ensure that their dog (including when confined in a vehicle or cage) does not enter or remain in any Public Place specified as prohibited in Schedule 1.
10 Temporary area restrictions
(1) The Council may, in its discretion and at any time, make temporary changes to Schedule 1 of this Bylaw to provide for–
a) leisure and cultural events (including dog friendly events);
b) protected wildlife that are vulnerable to dogs;
c) flora that are vulnerable to dogs;
d) pest control in any Public Place; and
e) other circumstances of a comparative nature to subclause (1)(a) to (d) inclusive.
(2) Any temporary change made under subclause (1) may be subject to conditions determined appropriate by Council and specified in the temporary change approval.
(3) An Owner of a dog must adhere to all conditions of temporary area restrictions made under subclauses (1) and (2).
Part 3: Dog Owner responsibilities
11 Minimum standards for accommodation
Every Owner of a dog must, in respect of every dog in their care provide:
(a) Adequate kennelling or other housing, ensure that it is located to provide adequate shade, warmth and dry conditions, and is of a sufficient size to allow the dog to move freely, stretch out, stand up or recline.
(b) Proper care and attention, sufficient food and water, adequate exercise and ensure the provision of veterinary care when required.
An Owner of a dog that defecates in a Public Place or on land or Premises other than that occupied by the Owner must immediately remove all faeces deposited by that dog and dispose of them in an appropriate manner that does not cause a nuisance.
13 Dogs in or on vehicles
(1) An Owner who leaves a dog in a stationary vehicle must ensure that the dog does not display signs of shade-seeking behaviour, as well as one or more of the following signs consistent with heat stress -
(b) excessive drooling; or
(2) The Owner of a dog transported on the open deck or open trailer of a moving motor vehicle (other than a moped, a motorcycle, or an all-terrain vehicle) on a public road must -
(a) ensure that the dog is secured in a way that prevents it from falling off or hanging off the open deck or open trailer (for example, by using a tether or a cage); and
(b) if the dog is secured by a tether, ensure that the tether is short enough to prevent the dog’s legs from reaching over the sides of the open deck of the vehicle or open trailer, but long enough to allow the dog to stand or lie down in a natural position.
(3) Subclause (2) does not apply when Working Dogs are unsecured on the open deck or open trailer of a moving motor vehicle on a public road while involved in driving or managing livestock (for example, when moving livestock from one paddock to another that is down the road).
(1) No dog infected with a contagious disease may be exercised in any Public Place.
(2) Every person in charge of a dog must ensure that any dog infected with a contagious disease is confined on their Premises in such a manner that it cannot leave the Premises, other than when being transported to a registered veterinary clinic for treatment.
The Owner of any female dog in season must ensure the dog does not enter or remain in any Public Place or private way unless –
(a) that dog is confined in a vehicle or cage for the purposes of transportation; or
(b) the Owner of that dog has the permission of the occupier or person controlling the Public Place; and complies with any reasonable conditions imposed.
The Owner of any dog or the owner or occupier of any Premises where any dog is kept shall:
(a) take adequate precautions to prevent any dogs from becoming a nuisance or injurious to health;
(b) take such steps as are necessary to prevent any dog from being a nuisance to residents or livestock by barking, howling, obstructing, rushing or frightening people or livestock.
Part 4: Enforcement, offences and penalties
(1) Every person who fails to comply with this bylaw commits an offence under section 20(5) of the Dog Control Act 1996 and is liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $20,000 as set out by section 242(4) of the Local Government Act 2002.
(2) A person who intentionally obstructs or impedes the Council in the exercise of its functions, powers or duties under this bylaw commits an offence under section 229 of the Local Government Act 2002.
(3) This clause does not prevent the Council from having recourse to other legal remedies, as it sees fit, to enforce the provisions of this bylaw.
(4) Every person commits an offence under this part of the bylaw who fails, refuses or neglects to do anything required to be done, or does anything prohibited by this bylaw, is liable to be served with an infringement notice pursuant to section 66 of the Dog Control Act 1996.
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Council may also exercise functions, powers and duties directly under the Dog Control Act 1996.
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Council can apply for an injunction under section 162 of the Local Government Act 2002 to prevent a person from committing a breach of this bylaw.
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(5) Any dog found at large in any place in breach of this bylaw whether or not the dog is wearing a collar having the proper label or disc attached, may be impounded.
Part 5: Savings and transitional provisions
Review of this bylaw will be undertaken in accordance with section 159 of the Local Government Act 2002.
Schedule 1 lists the area rules for the purposes of this bylaw.
20 Amendment of Schedules
The Council may, by resolution:
(a) add, amend or remove any Public Place from Schedule 1 and this bylaw shall apply to any Public Place amended or added to Schedule 1; and
(b) add, amend or remove any restriction on dogs and their Owners accessing the Public Place in Schedule 1 and a breach of any restriction made or amended by Council is a breach of this bylaw.
*For Schedule 1:Area Rules of the Bylaw please refer to the full bylaw document for download, or the area rule summaries by Community Board area below.
Download the Dog Control Bylaw
The full Dog Control Bylaw can also be downloaded by clicking on the link at the bottom of the page.
To make the local rules easier to understand, we have developed these summaries by Community Board area.
Summaries of the rules by area
The most important rule to remember is that dogs must be on a lead unless specified otherwise. So, when in doubt, put your dog on a lead. To help you understand the local rules, below is a summary of the rules for each Community Board area.