Animal Issues

If a dog attacks a person or other animal, you should report it to us immediately so we can act as soon as possible.

A dog attack is defined as a dog rushing at, attacking, biting, harassing or chasing any person or animal (other than vermin), whether or not any injury is caused to the person or animal.

If a dog attack is happening right now, call us on (02) 4227 7111 and call emergency services if needed. Council officers respond to dog attack reports 7 days a week at any time.

You’ll need to include your full name, contact phone number and as many details as you can about the attack.

If a dog attack has already happened, call us on (02) 4227 7111 or use the button below to report the incident.

Please note:

• Council is required to record any dog attack incidents with the Office of Local Government within 72 hours of the incident.
• Without contact details and adequate evidence, including a statement of the incident, Council may not be able to take appropriate enforcement action.
• Any photos provided should be time and date stamped if possible.

An aggressive dog incident is one where a dog displays aggressive behaviour, but without immediate intent of harm to a person or another animal.

You can report a dog that is behaving aggressively, or that you think might be dangerous.

If an aggressive dog incident is happening right now, call us on (02) 4227 7111 and call emergency services if needed. Council officers respond to aggressive dog incidents 7 days a week at any time.

You’ll need to include your full name, contact phone number and as many details as you can about the incident.

If an aggressive dog incident has already happened, call us on (02) 4227 7111 or use the button below to report it.

Please note:

• Without contact details and adequate evidence, including a statement of the incident, Council may not be able to take appropriate enforcement action.
• Any photos provided should be time and date stamped if possible.

If you find a dog that appears to be stray or roaming, you can:

• Try to secure the dog in your yard or home if you can do this safely.
• If the dog has a tag, try to phone the owner so they can pick it up.

If you can’t get the dog back to its owner, call us on (02) 4227 7111. Council officers can collect stray or roaming dogs 7 days a week between 9am and 5pm.

If you can’t contain the dog, call us on (02) 4227 7111 so that a Council officer can respond and attempt to catch the dog. Council officers respond to stray / roaming dogs 7 days a week between 9am and 5pm.

You can also use the button below to report it to us online.

Barking dog

If your neighbour’s dog is barking and disturbing you, the first step is to talk to your neighbour if you can. They might not know there’s a problem, especially if the dog barks when they’re not home.

If the owner agrees to do something about the barking, please wait a few weeks to see if their efforts are successful. Council is also happy to provide advice on how to assist with barking dog behaviour.

If you can’t talk to your neighbour, or if their efforts don't change anything, you can also contact a Community Justice Centre. This is an independent centre that provides free mediation to help people solve disputes.

If you haven't been able to resolve the matter directly with your neighbour or through mediation, report it to Council using the button below or call us on (02) 4227 7111.

You can read about rules that dog owners need to follow on our Dogs page.

Use the button below or call us on (02) 4227 7111 to report misbehaviour by a dog or its owner.

This could include things like a dog being off leash in public, or being in an area where dogs aren’t allowed.

If your dog goes missing, check with neighbours, nearby vets and visit our Find a Pet pages to check to see if your lost pet has already been listed as found by Council.

You can also call Council’s Animal Care and Impounding Services team on (02) 4227 7111 and we’ll do our best to reunite you with your pet.

Please note that not all lost pets come into Council's care. Our How to Find Your Lost Pet page has more tips on how to look for a lost pet.

It’s not illegal for cats to roam, but if a cat is making excessive noise or damaging property, you can report it to Council.

Use the link below or call us on (02) 4227 7111.

If you’ve found a stray cat and you can contain it, try contacting the owner if possible.

Otherwise, contact Council on (02) 4227 7111. Council officers can collect contained stray cats 7 days a week between 9am and 5pm.

If your cat goes missing, check with neighbours, nearby vets and visit our Find a Pet pages to check to see if your lost pet has already been listed as found by Council.

You can also call Council’s Animal Care and Impounding Services team on (02) 4227 7111 and we’ll do our best to reunite you with your pet.

Please note that not all lost pets come into Council's care. Our How to Find Your Lost Pet page has more tips on how to look for a lost pet.

If you find a dead animal on public land, report it to us on (02) 4227 7111 or use the button below.

Dead animals on private land

We do not handle dead animals on private property.

If you have a large dead animal like a deer, horse or cow on your property, you will need to arrange it to be taken to our Waste Depot at Kembla Grange for disposal. Waste disposal fees apply as shown below. Call us on (02) 4227 7111 ahead of time so our waste staff can prepare for your arrival.

Waste disposal fees for dead animals

It is the owner’s responsibility to find a new home for a cat or dog that they can no longer keep or do not want. If you are unable to rehome your pet yourself, you can ask to surrender it to Council. We charge a fee for this service and there is a waiting period.

Please note:

• There is no after-hours service for surrendering animals.
• You can only apply to surrender cats or dogs. Other types of animals cannot be surrendered to Council.
• Requests will only be met if we have the capacity to accept the animal. At times we may either be unable to accept an animal, or there may be a delay before we can accept it.
• You are encouraged to try any other available methods to rehome the animal (for example, offering it to friends or on social media) before you ask to surrender it to Council.

To ask us about options for surrendering a cat or dog, use the button below or call (02) 4227 7111 during business hours.

If you believe animals like chickens, pigs, pigeons, horses, goats or other livestock are not being kept properly, use the button below to report it.

Use the button below to report any domestic animal noise (except for barking dogs) in residential areas.

We have a limited role in dealing with pest animals like deer, rabbits, foxes and Indian myna birds.

We don’t take action in most pest animal cases, but by reporting problems you can help us track pest activity. We share this information with other government agencies and may use it to plan new control programs.

Magpies are known to sometimes swoop during the spring, which is their breeding season. It's estimated that only about 10% of magpies swoop, and when they do, it's usually only for a few weeks.

You can read about magpies' swooping behaviour and tips to avoid them on the NSW Department Planning and Environment website.

Although it can be scary getting swooped, the magpie is a protected species and it’s an offence to harm them.

Council can put warning signs up at known swooping locations to alert people using those areas.

Use the button below to let us know if you've been swooped by a magpie in a public space, or call us on (02) 4227 7111.

You should never approach an injured deer, as they can be dangerous.

• If an injured deer is creating an immediate danger to public safety, call the Police on 000.
• If the injured deer is on public land and is not causing an immediate danger, call Council on (02) 4227 7111 or report it to us using the link below

Call us on (02) 4227 7111 or use the button below if you find a roaming animal that’s not a cat or a dog.

Below are contacts for animal issues that are not handled by Council.

• Animal cruelty: contact the RSPCA
• Dog left in a car: if the owner can’t be found straight away, call the Police on 131 444 or RSPCA NSW on 1300 278 3589
• Export of Australian greyhounds: see the RSPCA's website
• Injured or orphaned wildlife: contact WIRES on 1300 094 737. If you’re in or south of the CBD you can also contact Wildlife Rescue South Coast on 0418 427 214
• Livestock roaming on private land: contact Local Land Services South East