Monash Council introduces cat curfew after community support

Cats across a council area in Melbourne’s east will need to be kept inside from sunset until sunrise, with possible penalties for owners that don’t comply. Here’s what you need to know.

Cats will be locked up under a night time cat curfew introduced by Monash Council.

Cats will be required to be locked up overnight in Monash under a council curfew.

The curfew will be introduced in April 2021, with a survey revealing majority community support for the plan.

The survey attracted 680 responses, with 75 per cent supporting the curfew.

Pet owners can be fined $165 for a first offence if their cat is found roaming outside their property during the hours of the curfew and $495 for second or subsequent offences.

But the council said it would be using an education process when responding to complaints, with infringements seen as a last resort.

The curfew, which will be between sunset or 7pm and sunrise, was originally set to be introduced at the end of 2020.

But the council decided at its May 2020 meeting to hold off introduction of a cat curfew until April 2021, when pet registrations are due.

The most common reason survey respondents supported a curfew was to help reduce nuisance caused by cats and to protect wildlife and impact on the environment.

Councillor Josh Fergeus, who has supported the cat curfew for several years, said he welcomed the move.

“Roaming has a big impact on night time amenity, it has big environmental issues and it’s less safe for the animals themselves,” Cr Fergeus said.

Mayor Stuart James said the survey gave the council a clear message there was community support for a cat curfew.

“Though previous consultation in 2017 showed sentiment towards more education about keeping cats in at night and concerns about nuisance cats, a specific question about a curfew

had not been directly asked, particularly to registered cat owners in Monash. Cr James said.

“A cat curfew is a measure that sends a message about responsible pet ownership, which we

know matters to our community and I’d like to thank everyone who participated in this survey.”

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