Waikato District Council news
We listened – that’s the message to dog owners after Waikato District Council adopted its Dog Control Bylaw and Policy on Monday 11th April.
After consulting with the community, the Council which controls Raglan and other Waikato towns has decided to make changes based on the feedback they received. One of the changes is to remove the proposed permit requirements for rural zoned properties. This means dog owners in rural zoned properties will not need to get a permit for three or more dogs.
“Council had originally proposed a permit for more than two dogs in rural zone areas, but we received submissions from an overwhelming number of people who did not support this,” says Animal Control Team Leader Tracey Oakes.
“Our intention was to consider a different way to address some of the welfare issues we have seen over the past five years, but we acknowledge that a permit was not the best approach. Our sentiment was good – but we got it wrong. We know that the majority of people in our district are good dog owners and we do not want to make it harder for them.”