A 24-HOUR cat curfew will not be implemented in the Kingston municipality for now.
Kingston Council had been considering following the lead of many other Victorian councils and implementing a 24-hour ban on cats being outside properties. At their December meeting, Kingston councillors elected to continue the current policy of a night-time ban from sunset to sunrise.
The night-time ban was implemented in 2010. Kingston councillors have agreed to reassess the future of a 24-hour ban when council’s 2021-2025 domestic animal management plan is renewed.
A report prepared by Kingston Council officers read that council would respond to feedback from other levels of government to form its policy.
“The federal government is currently undertaking public consultation to determine how to reduce the widespread predation on native wildlife and create uniform cat confinement measures across all the states and territories. The Victorian state government has also committed to funding and actions to improve cat management outcomes in Victoria,” council officers wrote. “It is proposed to maintain the current night-time (sunset to sunrise) cat curfew that is in place across Kingston and consider whether any changes are required through the development of the next domestic animal management plan. This will allow further consideration of any changes at a federal or state government level.”
At the December meeting, councillors also agreed to proceed to community consultation on a proposal to limit the number of dogs allowed under a person’s control at any one time to four in designated off-leash areas.
First published in the Chelsea Mordialloc Mentone News – 20 December 2023