Your responsibilities as a cat owner

Cat on lead

Cat owners in NSW have a range of responsibilities under the Companion Animals Act 1998. The Department of Local Government website provides information on the responsibilities of cat owners, penalty notices issued under the Act and what to do if your cat is missing.

Owners should consider desexing their cats as this decreases unplanned and unnecessary breeding and will help to reduce roaming cats in the area.

What is Cat Containment?

Cat containment is the requirement for cats to stay on your property or under your control 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. This means that roaming cats are picked up (like other lose animals) and taken to a vet or pound instead of being left to roam. This is designed to reduce the number of stray and feral cats as well as help improve the safety of pet cats that can be injured by or contract diseases from roaming cats.

The Revised Cat Containment policy(PDF, 2MB) was adopted at the 12 February 2025 Council Meeting.

This policy has multiple stages however if you are in an urban area the key dates to know are:

  • 1 July 2025 – all cats born on or after 1 March 2025 must be contained
  • 1 January 2027 - all cats are required to be contained

Cat containment policy - dates and locations

From 26 May 2021 all cats must be contained in:

  • Jumping Creek development
  • Googong Sunset development
  • Elm Grove (North Elmslea)
  • Braidwood Ridge
  • South Jerrabomberra (Tralee)
  • Googong Township- in particular the following neighbourhoods
    • Neighbourhood 2- stage 11, 12, 12, 14, 15, 16a, 16b, 16c, 16d
    • Neighbourhood 3- stages 1-7
    • Neighbourhood 4- stages 1-10
    • Neighbourhood 5- stages 1-7
  • All future greenfield developments in the QPRC area

From 1 July 2025 - all cats born on or after 1 March 2025 must be contained in urban areas of the QPRC Local Government Area.

From 26 May 2026 - all cats must be contained in the following areas of Googong Township:

  • Neighbourhood 1A- stages 1-5
  • Neighbourhood 1B- stages 1-8
  • Neighbourhood 2- stages 1-10

From 1 January 2027 - all cats in urban areas of the QPRC Local Government must be contained.

How do I contain my cat?

You can choose to:

  • Have indoor cats
  • Buy or build a cat run or enclosure
  • Modify your backyard or balcony so they cannot leave your property (with cat netting, fence rollers or cat proof fence kits).

For more information about ways to safely contain your cats head to https://safeandhappycas.com.au 

For more information you can download and read the policy.

Find our more by reading the Cat Containment brochure(PDF, 2MB).

Sub Wild Cats

A growing stray cat population creates public health risk and nuisance, especially if they are not vaccinated and desexed. Feeding and harbouring stray and feral cats contributes to over population and does not necessarily benefit the cat's wellbeing. Traps can be hired from the Queanbeyan-Palerang Animal Management Services for seven working days. Once a cat has been caught, cover with a sheet or towel and bring the cat to the Queanbeyan-Palerang Animal Management Facility.

Selling or Giving Away Cats or Dogs

When selling or giving away cats, kittens, dogs and puppies people in NSW advertising them will need to include an ID number in all advertisements. The ID number can be either a microchip number, a breeder identification number, or a rehoming organisation number. 

The rules will apply to all advertisements including those in newspapers, posters, community notice boards and all forms of online advertising such as the Trading Post, Gumtree and social media sites.

This is designed to help people looking to buy a cat or dog search the NSW Pet Registry to see the animal’s breed, sex, age, whether it’s desexed, whether or not it’s registered and whether any annual permit is in place. 

 

 

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