Lost Animals

Due to the COVID-19 restrictions, a number of operational updates have been implemented at our municipal animal pound to ensure the safety of the community, staff and animals. 

Lost animals are still able to be collected from the pound by pet owners. Impound procedures have been updated to align with COVID-19 restriction requirements.

Stray and surrendered animals are still being accepted at the pound, by appointment only. COVID-19 hygiene practices, including the wearing of face masks and social distancing must be adhered to at all times during appointments.

Click here to report a lost animal.

Contact Council and local vet clinics.

Pets can be dropped off to vet clinics, or collected by a Council officer. Make sure you contact regularly until you find your pet, as you should not rely only on receiving a call back. Leave a lost animal report with as much detail as possible. Council can be called after hours on 5624 2411 and a lost report can be left – an officer will return your call during business hours.

Do a door knock.

Make sure you look around the neighbourhood, but don’t forget to speak to neighbours, as they may have seen your pet or can keep an eye out for them. Sometimes scared cats will hide out in neighbour’s sheds or garages, so it’s important to ask people to check for you to make sure they are not hiding out.

Put up posters or do a mail box drop.

Mail box drops are a good idea, in case no one is home when you do a door knock. Putting a photo of your pet on the poster will also help people identify your pet if they find it.

Check social media.

There are many sites on social media, such as community or lost pet pages, that allow people to post about lost or found pets. Make sure you check frequently and make a post with a recent photo of your pet. If you do not have social media, ask someone who does to do this for you.

Update your details.

The most important thing when reuniting an owner and pet is that their details are up to date. Make sure you update your pets microchip and Council registration when you change address, phone numbers or when you buy a new pet. 

Every dog and cat is required to be microchipped by law, unless exempt. Councils, vet clinics and other similar agencies have access to microchip registries and can access your details should your pet be collected. It is important to make sure that your pet is microchipped in your name, to the correct address and with current contact numbers (you can also include your email address). If you are not sure what registry your pet’s microchip is listed on, visit petaddress.com.au and enter their microchip number into the search box.

Details can be found on microchip registry websites about how to update your pet’s microchip.

All dogs and cats over the age of 3 months are required to be registered with Council. For more information, visit our dogs or cats page.

If you find a stray dog (at any time), call 5624 2411 and an officer will arrange its collection. Council have access to many resources and offer the best chance at reuniting a pet with its owner. Council collects contained dogs 24 hours a day. Officers will not attend a wandering dog outside of business hours.

If you find a stray cat, please hire a cat cage from one of the Council Customer Service Centres. Council will not accept cats in personal cages and possum traps are strictly prohibited as they can cause injury to the cat. Once the cat is caught, please return the cat and cage to a Council Customer Service Centre.

If you have found your animal here please contact the Community Compliance team on 5624 2411.