Off-leash dogs driving kangaroos out of Antonio Park in Mitcham

Fears for the future of Mitcham’s kangaroo population are growing, with off-lead dogs regularly seen chasing the natives away from bushland. Now, park users are demanding action against irresponsible pet owners.

Antonio Park users say kangaroos can be seen in the bushland almost daily.

Fears for the future of Mitcham’s kangaroo population are growing, with dog owners allowing their pets to roam off-lead in a patch of bushland where the natives are known to live.

Neighbours are worried the dogs regularly seen chasing kangaroos from Antonio Park will not only cause the animals to disappear from the suburb, but could cause crashes on the major roads surrounding the reserve.

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Mitcham’s Adam Pepper, who walks his dog on-lead at the park daily, is one of those concerned the actions of other dog owners will drive the kangaroos away.

He said Mitcham was lucky to have a mob of eastern kangaroos call the area home, and people should respect the “unique space”, where he had also spotted koalas and echidnas.

Councillor Prue Cutts took this photo at Antonio Park in March.

“It’s pretty special to have them in a park with so many people living nearby,” he said.

“It shows there’s still good biodiversity in the region.”

He’s one of the park users pushing for more to be done to stop the dog owners letting their “dogs charge off into the bushland” to chase kangaroos.

Mr Pepper has seen kangaroos hit by cars on Deep Creek Rd, and said he had heard others say they had seen dogs chasing kangaroos through nearby streets.

Signs at Antonio Park indicate it is not an off-lead area.

Whitehorse councillor Prue Cutts confirmed dogs were meant to be on-lead in the “unique parkland”.

She said when the council recently re-evaluated which parks would be off-lead, Antonio Park was not considered because of its kangaroo population.

“It’s the only park I know that has kangaroos,” she said.

Whitehorse Council does not allow dogs to be off-lead at Antonio Park.

Cr Cutts said for two and a half years she had “consistently” received complaints about dogs being off-leash at the park.

She said council officers had increased patrols of the park to prevent the behaviour in previous years.

In response to neighbours sharing concerns about dogs at the park being unrestrained in a Facebook group last week, councillor Ben Stennett said he had asked officers to review whether signs at the park were clear.

He said he passed on residents’ requests for stronger enforcement of the rule.

Councillors Cutts and Stennett have been pushing for the council-owned land at 21 Wattle Valley Rd, just north of Antonio Park, to be converted into parkland to expand the suburb’s wildlife corridor.

In the council’s draft budget for 2019-20, $200,000 has been allocated to convert the site into a park.

Mr Pepper said it was a “critical” move for supporting the wildlife.