A guide to dog control in Tasmania

Most dogs in Tasmania must be microchipped by the time they are six months old. Specific exemptions apply for certain types of working or regulated dogs.

All dogs over six months of age must be registered with the relevant local council. The person listed on the registration is legally recognised as the owner. Owners are responsible for keeping contact details up to date with both the local council and the microchip registry. Find out more about microchipping and registration.

A core legal responsibility for every dog owner is to keep their animal under effective control at all times in a public place. The rules differ depending on whether the area is designated on-lead or off-lead.

In on-lead areas

On footpaths, roads, and other designated on-lead areas, dogs must be on a lead no longer than 2 m, held by a person capable of controlling the dog.

In off-lead areas

In designated off-lead areas, such as certain parks or beaches, effective control must still be maintained. This means the dog must remain within sight and return immediately when called, regardless of distractions. Dogs that do not reliably respond to commands must remain on a lead.

The specific locations of off-lead areas are determined by each local council. Details can be found on council websites or by checking local signage.

Walking multiple dogs

The law sets a limit on the number of dogs one person can manage at a time: a maximum of two dogs on a footpath and no more than four dogs in any other public place.

A dog is legally considered a nuisance if it:

• Creates a noise, such as persistent barking, that unreasonably disturbs the peace and comfort of neighbours.
• Behaves in a way that is dangerous or injurious to a person's health.

Responsibilities as an owner

Owners must prevent their dogs from becoming a nuisance, including the legal requirement to immediately clean up any faeces left in a public place.

Handling nuisance complaints

A person affected by a nuisance dog may lodge a formal complaint with their local council. The council will investigate and, if it determines a nuisance exists, may issue an abatement notice to the owner. This notice requires the owner to take actions to resolve the problem, with penalties for failing to comply.

For community safety, there are rules for certain categories of dog considered higher risk:

• Dangerous dogs: Any breed declared dangerous by a council due to behaviour such as causing serious injury to a person or another animal.
• Restricted breed dogs: Any dog belonging to a breed in the Dog Control Act as restricted.

Owners of dangerous or restricted breed dogs must comply with additional requirements, which may include:

• mandatory desexing and microchipping
• standards for enclosures and warning signs
• mandatory muzzling in public.

Find out more about dangerous and restricted breed dogs.

There are strict rules and significant penalties to protect the community and other animals from aggressive dogs. It is an offence for an owner to allow a dog to rush at, chase, attack or bite.

Rushing and chasing

It is an offence to allow a dog to rush at or chase a person, with a maximum penalty of 5 penalty units. This applies even if there is no physical contact or injury.

Dog attacks and penalties

Maximum penalties vary according to the severity of the incident:

• Non-serious injury to a person or animal: 10 penalty units.
• Serious injury or death to another animal: 20 penalty units.
• Serious injury to a person: 30 penalty units.

Attacks on sensitive wildlife

It is an offence for a dog to injure or kill sensitive wildlife within a designated sensitive area, with a maximum penalty of 30 penalty units. Wildlife species and locations protected under this rule are declared by the minister responsible for nature conservation.

Owner obligations and court orders

If a dog attacks a person, the owner must notify the local council within 24 hours. Failing to do so carries a maximum penalty of 5 penalty units.

If found guilty of an offence involving a dog attack, a court may also order:

• payment of compensation for any damage or costs resulting from the attack
• destruction of the dog.

A court may find no offence was committed if the dog was:

• acting in reasonable defence of a person or property
• being teased, abused or assaulted
• a working or hunting dog engaged in its specific duties.

Understanding fines: Penalty units and infringement notices

Fines under the Dog Control Act and the Dog Control Regulations are calculated using penalty units. The penalty units listed are the maximum penalties that can be imposed by a court. For many offences, local councils may issue a lower, on-the-spot fine (infringement notice) instead of pursuing court action.

The value of a penalty unit is set annually by the Department of Justice. Example: 5 penalty units × (current dollar value) = total fine amount. Go to the Department of Justice website for the current value of a penalty unit.