The City of Greater Bendigo has adopted a new Domestic Animal Management Plan 2026-2029 and a new Keeping of Animals Local Law following consideration of submissions made by residents through a community engagement process.
City of Greater Bendigo Mayor Cr Thomas Prince said the City has a legislative requirement under the Domestic Animals Act 1994 to prepare a Domestic Animal Management Plan (DAMP) every four years and this is the fifth plan that the City has adopted.
"Local Law 2 which has several clauses relating to the keeping of domestic animals must also be reviewed every 10 years under the Local Government Act to ensure it meets community expectations and relevancy," Cr Prince said.
"The DAMP 2026-2029 builds on the achievements and work from the previous four plans which established a framework to guide future service programs and actions.
"I would like to take this opportunity to thank all residents who took the time to share their thoughts on both the draft DAMP and the Keeping of Animals Local Law."
This latest review of the DAMP focused largely on maintaining current initiatives and monitoring their effectiveness to ensure they continue to deliver meaningful outcomes for the community following the significant changes that were made in the previous DAMP.
Following a community consultation process there have been no significant changes made to the draft DAMP. However, several small changes have been made to correct data, include additional evaluation methods and continue to benchmark services with other organisations regarding dog waste removal.
Changes to the draft Local Law have included simplifying language and retaining the requirement for a permit to keep roosters in residential areas.
Some additional amendments were made to the poultry keeping section to ensure that the criteria for assessing permit applications are appropriate and well-considered. Several other matters were also addressed as part of the feedback in relation to definitions, clerical errors and refinement of language to ensure that the Local Law was easy to understand and could not be misinterpreted.
The Domestic Animal Management Plan 2026-2029 is available to view on the City's website with the new Keeping of Animals Local Law coming into effect on January 1, 2026.
