Revealed: Gympie’s dog registration crisis as attacks soar

With almost half the dogs in the Gympie region unregistered and therefore ‘illegal’ the Gympie council plans to visit every home to flush out ‘illegal’ pets, with certain neighbourhoods high on the list.

Owners of unregistered dogs could soon be in the crosshairs with the Gympie council cracking down on the illegal pets as the number of attacks rises.

Owners of unregistered dogs could soon be in the crosshairs with the Gympie council cracking down on the illegal pets as the number of attacks rises.

Gympie councillors on Wednesday backed an inspection program to address what staff say is a “significant” number of unregistered dogs across the region.

The report presented to councillors at the meeting estimated at least 45 per cent of dogs in the region were unregistered.

Staff said in the report this figure is likely “conservative” and “likely to be significantly higher” according to reports from other Queensland councils.

The proposal comes following an increase in the number of dog attacks across the region, including a terrifying January 2025 incident which left four people injured.

Owners of unregistered dogs could soon be in the crosshairs with the Gympie council cracking down on the illegal pets as the number of attacks rises.

The attacks were caused by two dogs which escaped a property and went on a rampage from the Mary River walk to Bligh Street earlier this year, before finally being corralled and euthanised by police and council rangers.

Staff said in the report there have been 45 animal attacks recorded in the region in the first half of 2025, compared to 61 for all of 2024.

They said investigations often found “the attacks were carried out by unregistered dogs that were previously unknown to the council”.

The three month-long program would involve council workers going door-to-door, targeting areas identified as “greater risk” of unregistered animals.

The proposal comes following an increase in the number of dog attacks across the region, including a terrifying January 2025 incident which left four people with injuries.

Staff would not enter properties as they would likely be able to determine whether a dog was present from out the front, staff say

The program was expected to pay for itself, with the council proposing to spend $40,000 on the scheme which was expected to bring in $40,000 in increased registration payments.

Originally published as Revealed: Gympie’s dog registration crisis as attacks soar