Update - September 2024

Thank you to everyone who provided their feedback. We received over 1,000 responses from the online survey and emails. Most respondents think roaming cats are an issue and support some form of cat curfew. We also received suggestions around things like increasing educating on responsible cat ownership, offering incentives for desexing, and implementing a curfew in stages.

Overview

Research shows that cats are more at risk of injury or catching diseases when they are outside. There's also more chance they will attack wildlife or go missing.

Council officers sometimes need to get involved when cats create issues for other pets, neighbours, wildlife and/or themselves.

That's why, in line with the Domestic Animal Management Plan 2021-2025, Council wants to understand the community's appetite for the introduction of a cat curfew in our City.

There are three options:

• Option 1: No curfew (no change)
• Option 2: An overnight curfew which would require owners to keep cats within their property boundary
• Option 3: Curfew 24 hours/7 days a week, which would require owners to keep cats within their property boundary at all times.

Your feedback will help inform the next steps, including the development of a proposal for Council to consider.

A cat curfew, sometimes called cat containment, is a specified time when cats are not allowed outside of their owner's property boundary.

One-fifth of the 79 councils in Victoria are currently considering cat curfews. Over one-third have already introduced an overnight curfew and 10 have introduced a 24/7 cat curfew.

The RSPCA supports cat curfews as part of responsible management of cats.

Explore the tabs below to learn about what each option might look like and the benefits and disadvantages of each.

While cats are popular pets in our City, those allowed to roam can:

• kill native wildlife (even a well-fed cat will hunt)
• breed with feral cats further increasing the population in the wild
• get injured in fights, or hit by cars and other vehicles
• annoy neighbours by spraying, fighting, yowling, defecating, and digging in gardens
• become lost or impounded.

An overnight curfew would mean cats must not be outside a property boundary during certain hours, for example dusk-to-dawn or 10pm to 6pm.

Another potential option for a cat curfew is confinement at all times, 24 hours/7 days a week. This option can help reduce the number of cats roaming outside their premises.

The Lost Dogs Home advocates for a 24/7 curfew to help reduce cat fatalities on roads and to limit the interactions that pet cats have with diseased cats.

Outcomes in other councils

Many councils in Victoria are considering, or have moved to, a 24/7 curfew and have found that it helps to simplify enforcement. Of the 79 Victorian councils, 10 have introduced a 24/7 cat curfew and have observed a reduction in the stray cat population.

Some councils have found that, over time, trapped cats are mostly owned rather than feral or wild cats, leading to a reduction in the stray cat population. A 24/7 curfew lessens the likelihood of cats being trapped outside of the specified curfew times.