Dog Act 1976 (WA)

Western Australia

Western Australia

Dog Act 1976

An Act to amend and consolidate the law relating to the control and registration of dogs, the ownership, breeding and keeping of dogs, the supply of dogs to and by relevant pet shop businesses and the obligations and rights of persons in relation thereto, and for incidental and other purposes.

[Long title amended: No. 29 of 2021 s. 6.]

This Act may be cited as the Dog Act 1976.

• (1)

  Except as provided in subsection (2), this Act, or this Act less such provisions as are specified in any such proclamation, shall come into operation on a date to be fixed by proclamation.

• (2)

  The Governor may, by proclamation made pursuant to subsection (1) or by any subsequent proclamation, fix a date for the coming into operation of any provision of this Act on a date other than the date fixed in relation to the provisions of the Act generally.

• (1)

  In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires — 

approval to breed has the meaning given in section 26I(1);

attack, in relation to the behaviour of a dog, does not include behaviour which was an immediate response to, and was induced by, provocation, but includes — 

• (a)

  aggressively rushing at or harassing any person or animal; or

• (b)

  biting, or otherwise causing physical injury to, a person or an animal; or

• (c)

  tearing clothing on, or otherwise causing damage to the property of, the person attacked; or

• (d)

  attempting to attack, or behaving in such a manner toward a person as would cause a reasonable person to fear physical injury,

unless the owner establishes that the behaviour was justified by a reasonable cause;

authorised person means —

• (a)

  a person appointed under the Local Government Act 1995 section 9.10(2) to be an authorised person for the purposes of this Act; or

• (b)

  a person designated as an authorised officer under the Public Health Act 2016 section 24(1) for the purposes of this Act;

centralised registration system has the meaning given in section 13A(1);

CEO means the chief executive officer of the Department;

commercial security dog means a dog that is kept primarily for the purpose of guarding or protecting premises that are not dwellings and that are not the premises of the dog’s owner, whether or not accompanied by a dog handler;

convicted person means a person who has, within the previous 5 years, been convicted of —

• (a)

  an offence against —

• (i)

  this Act; or

• (ii)

  the Cat Act 2011; or

• (iii)

  the Animal Welfare Act 2002;

or

• (b)

  an offence against a law of the Commonwealth, another State or a Territory that is substantially the same as an offence referred to in paragraph (a);

dangerous dog means a dog that is —

• (a)

  a dangerous dog (declared); or

• (b)

  a dangerous…