City of Whittlesea introduces 24-hour cat curfew, mandatory desexing

The introduction of a cat curfew in the City of Whittlesea already has fur flying, with some likening the move to “animal cruelty”.

Whittlesea streets will be cleared of roaming cats in a controversial move by the council.

The City of Whittlesea has joined a growing list of Victorian municipalities to introduce a 24-hour car curfew and mandatory desexing of newly registered cats, with the changes coming into effect in August 2023.

Under the new rules, cats are required to be securely contained on their owners’ properties, 24 hours a day.

They can still spend time outdoors, provided their owners can “cat proof” their yards to prevent the cat leaving the property.

Animal management officers will have the task of collecting any cats found outside their owners’ property boundaries, and will either return them to their owners or take them to the pound at Epping.

The council says its decision was based on the results of “extensive community consultation, industry research and benchmarking of other local councils over several months”.

Chair administrator Lydia Wilson said the new rules would “help protect and enhance the welfare and safety of cats” and “create a more harmonious environment between pets, people and other animals”.

Some have hit back at new animal management rules, saying it’s ‘cruel’ to confine cats accustomed to the outdoors. File photo

But the move has already prompted backlash from pet owners claiming the rules would be difficult to enforce on animals accustomed to spending time outside.

“I agree with the night curfew … but not a 24 hour cat curfew. That’s so extreme! Most houses in this area are on small blocks -who will have the room to build a cat run?” Rachel Costa commented on a social media post about the changes.

Andrew Whittle called the changes “ridiculous” and questioned why the council “always either goes well overboard on some topics and then have not a care in the world on other topics”.

Many hit back at outdoor enclosures or cat runs being raised as a possible solution, due to the money and space required to install them.

“A Google search shows MINIMUM cost (of an enclosure) is at least $300. The idea is good in theory, but we need to be realistic,” Tanya Nyhus said.

“I rent so any kind of cat enclosure is out of the question,” Heather Jay said. “Makes it difficult to be a pet owner when the goalpost changes after you get the animals.”

Others went as far as to accuse the council of “animal cruelty” and suggested the new rules could create new problems such as an increase in rodents and in abandoned or unregistered cats.

“Cats need their freedom for their mental health. What’s the point of having them caged? Most suburbs in the city of whittlesea cats might kill the odd mouse, rat or indian mina around their home … … they serve a useful purpose,” Jim Vlahos said.

The council supplies purpose-built traps for householders experiencing issues with “trespassing” cats. File photo

Ms Wilson said a survey of more than 1800 community members found more than 80 per cent supported “some form of cat curfew” and more than 82 per cent supported mandatory cat desexing for newly registered cats.

She said Whittlesea had a “significant cat overpopulation problem” and needed strong measures to tackle the issue.

“The sad reality is that more than 450 impounded cats are euthanised each year in the City of Whittlesea,” Ms Wilson said.

“We value pets and the role they play in our community and we need to balance the wellbeing and management of pets, strays and wildlife with the needs of the community as a whole,” she said.

To help cat owners transition to the new arrangements, the council is offering a subsidised cat desexing program until June 2023, and will be advocating for funding from the State Government to extend the program.

There are currently 7,832 registered cats in the City of Whittlesea, with 95 per cent of them desexed.