‘Council needs to do some things better’: Uproar over pound drop-boxes

The RSPCA has responded to the Toowoomba community’s animal welfare concerns relating to the council’s use of after-hours drop boxes at the Drayton pound, where animals are left in metal boxes for hours - sometimes without food or water.

Picture: Supplied

Changes may be implemented at the Toowoomba pound after the community slammed how the facility was run, alleging the use of after-hours drop boxes was putting the welfare of lost pets at risk.

The RSPCA has echoed those concerns and urged Toowoomba Regional Council to make changes to the after-hours procedures at Drayton’s Animal Management Centre.

RSPCA Queensland spokeswoman Emma Lagoon said after-hours drop boxes could pose serious risk to the health and lives of animals placed in them.

“We would like to see council phase the boxes and consider other alternatives for after-hours animal support,” she said.

“(There’s) potential risks of death for animals dropped in these boxes if they’ve been injured, sick, or are too young to care for themselves.

“Extreme weather can also pose health risks like heat stress in summer or cold in winter.”

Emma Lagoon with Cloud the American staffy. Pic Annette Dew

Ms Lagoon said most animals were not used to the environment which could cause distress and for them to injure themselves.

“Most drop boxes also do not provide water or food, and this is a concern when animals could be in these boxes unattended for hours,” she said.

“If an animal is dropped in a box without information, it can also make it harder to help reunite lost (and) escaped pets.”

She noted RSPCA Queensland has worked with other councils to phase out drop boxes to improve animal welfare – most recently at Ipswich in 2019.

“We are unaware of other council facilities in Queensland that have after-hours drop boxes,” Ms Lagoon said.

“Other councils that we work with in Queensland have contracts that address after-hours calls for assistance.”

Councillor Tim McMahon. Picture: Kevin Farmer

Despite originally saying he believed the use of after-hours drop boxes was “best practice,” Toowoomba councillor Tim McMahon now wants to see the process change.

“I’d like to start looking at alternatives to the overnight animal drop-off centres,” he said in a video posted to social media.

Mr McMahon said he believed he was “ready to go into bat” for better processes to be implemented at the council’s Animal Management centre.

“I’ve been spending most of the start of the year working on this,” he said.

“... There has been overwhelming evidence that council needs to do some things better in regards to animal management.

“I don’t work for council, I work for (the community) and I’ve been listening and I think this needs to happen.”

Mr McMahon said in 2024 that he planned to implement a change to weekend hours and staffing so pets could be processed quicker, better record keeping, how fees are accumulated, and alternatives to overnight animal drop-off centres.