Animal management fees and charges

Here are the fees we charge for animal management, including dog registration fees and pound charges.

All charges include GST, effective from 1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027.

Dog registration and dog impounding fees are imposed under the Dog Control Act 1996. Driving charges and impounding fees for animals other than dogs are imposed under the Impounding Act 1955. The fees and charges are necessary to recover the cost to Council of providing these services.

Fixed fees

These charges cover the standard cost to Council in carrying out the work listed. However, additional charges may be charged depending on the circumstances, such as additional inspection fees that may be incurred in doing the work noted below.

Dog registration	Standard fee 2026-27	Total fee (including penalty) if paid after 31 July
General registration	$189	$283.50
General registration (desexed dog)	$140	$210
Preferred owner	$103	$154.50
Working dogs	$65	$97.50
Disability assist	no charge	no charge
Certified for use by specified agency	no charge	no charge
Preferred owner or multiple dog permit application	$66

Dog registration fees are set under the Dog Control Act 1996. Disability assist and specified agency are as defined in section 2 of the Act.

If a dog has been classified as a dangerous dog, its registration fee will be 50% higher than the standard registration fee for that dog.

You can keep your dog registration costs down by:

paying your registration fees on time
desexing and microchipping your dog
being a preferred owner

These fees are set under S.68 of the Dog Control Act 1996.
Pound fees for dogs	Fee
When a dog is registered, microchipped, has no history with our animal management team within the past 12 months and can be returned home immediately, there is no cost.	Nil
When a dog is registered, microchipped, has no history with our animal management team within the past 12 months and needs to be held in the pound pending same-day collection, a holding fee will apply.	$50
First impound	$148
Second impound, within 12 months of first impound	$222
Third or subsequent impound, within 12 months of previous impound	$298
Daily charge per dog per day or part of a day	$24
Surrender of a dog	$102
Adoption fee (covers microchipping, vaccination, neutering and registration)	$425

Set under the Impounding Act 1955.
Pound fees for all animals other than dogs	Per head
First offence	$133
Repeated offence	$200
Sustenance and care	$17 per day

Other fees

These fees may be added to the fixed fees list above or may be applied as a single charge.

Supplementary feed for stock

$150% of sustenance charge.

Emergency release of animals from the pound outside normal hours

Normal hours are 8am to 5pm, Monday to Friday, excluding statutory and public holidays. Emergency release fees are in addition to the impound fees.

Emergency release of dogs	Fee
First emergency release	$77
Second emergency release, within 12 months of first impound	$115
Third and subsequent emergency releases, within 12 months of previous impound	$155

Emergency release of other animals	Fee
First emergency release	$73
Second or subsequent emergency release, within 12 months o first impound	$109

Driving charges	Fee
Hire transport	Actual cost incurred by Council
Council vehicles	$2.34 per kilometre

Microchipping	Fee per dog
To carry out microchipping	$31

Charges for Council staff	Rate per hour (or part thereof)
Team Leader, Animal Management and Education	$240
Animal Control Officer	$168
Administration staff	$149
Manager, Environmental Protection	$284
General Manager	$305

Guidance note

The environmental protection manager is authorised to remit, reduce or refund the dog control fee or part of the fee in any particular case or class of dog where there are special grounds for doing so.