Dunedin council proposes registration of cats in New Zealand

Cats and kittens may soon be required to be registered. Photo / 123RF

A Dunedin proposal that could result in the registration of cats in New Zealand will be discussed nationally.

The proposal from the Dunedin City Council, in consultation with seven other councils, will next month go to a Local Government New Zealand (LGNZ) vote.

If it is successful, LGNZ would make it a policy, and begin lobbying the Government to have it made law.

The proposal could see the Government called upon to develop legislation for cats similar to the Dog Control Act.

It already has the support of the Otago Regional Council, one of 78 councils which will vote on the idea.

The proposal came after a series of submissions to the Dunedin City Council, the most recent from the Landscape Connections Trust.

The trust earlier this year made a submission to the council asking for cats to be microchipped.

The call came after the trust developed the Halo Project, a community-run predator control programme surrounding the Orokonui Ecosanctuary.

Some residents within the area were concerned about the ecological and public nuisance issue with feral cats.

The submission said there was a "vacuum of cat management policy and services in Dunedin".

It called for a bylaw similar to one in Wellington, where cats over 12 weeks old have to be microchipped.

They could then be returned to owners if lost or caught in cage traps.

Trust spokeswoman Jinty MacTavish said the trust wanted the council to consider the Wellington bylaw, both for the safety of cats and "what is a not insubstantial ecological issue".

But the remit to LGNZ said district council powers for cats concentrated on minimising the impact on people's health and wellbeing, while regional council's powers were restricted to destruction of feral cats as pests.

"There are no statutory powers available for the district council to implement an alternative solution such as requiring companion cat owners to control their cats to avoid or minimise the harm of companion cats on urban or rural wildlife."

Councillor Kate Wilson said yesterday she did not want to prejudge what any legislation would look like, but she imagined any cat registration introduced would be a one-off cost at the time of microchipping and desexing.

"Once it's done, it's done."

The legislation may give the council the power to destroy cats that were not chipped.

"At the moment it is the only animal that is not legislated for, and it's peculiar."

Councillor Wilson said people who were concerned about the proposal "should be weighing up the concerns they have if you don't have it".

"If you get rid of the stoats and rats and weasels, what are the cats going to live on if you don't manage them?"

LGNZ chief executive Malcolm Alexander said the remit would go before the organisation's general meeting on July 25.

LGNZ represents the national interests of councils in New Zealand.

Alexander said the remit would be debated at the meeting before a vote by members.The remit was a direct way of members setting policy positions for the organisation.

"A remit becomes official policy of LGNZ if it's passed."

ORC chairman Stephen Woodhead said his council discussed the remit yesterday and was "very supportive".