Inquiry Into the Legislative and Regulatory Framework Relating to Restricted‑Breed Dogs

PARLIAMENT OF VICTORIA Legislative Council Economy and Infrastructure Committee Inquiry into the legislative and regulatory framework relating to restricted‑breed dogs Parliament of Victoria Economy and Infrastructure Committee Ordered to be published VICTORIAN GOVERNMENT PRINTER March 2016 PP No 152, Session 2014‑16 ISBN 978 1 925458 18 3 (print version) 978 1 925458 19 0 (PDF version) Committee membership Mr Joshua Morris MLC Mr Khalil Eideh MLC Dr Rachel Carling-Jenkins MLC Chair Deputy Chair Western Metropolitan Western Victoria Western Metropolitan up to 8 October 2015 Mr Philip Dalidakis MLC Mr Nazih Elasmar MLC Mr Bernie Finn MLC Southern Metropolitan Northern Metropolitan Western Metropolitan up to 4 August 2015 Ms Colleen Hartland MLC Mr Craig Ondarchie MLC Ms Gayle Tierney MLC Western Metropolitan Northern Metropolitan Western Victoria from 4 August 2015 Inquiry into the legislative and regulatory framework relating to restricted‑breed dogs iii Committee staff Secretariat Dr Christopher Gribbin, Acting Secretary Mr Pete Johnston, Inquiry Officer Council Committees office Ms Annemarie Burt, Research Assistant Ms Kim Martinow de Navarrete, Research Assistant Ms Esma Poskovic, Research Assistant Mr Anthony Walsh, Research and Legislation Officer Committee contact details Address Economy and Infrastructure Committee Parliament of Victoria, Spring Street EAST MELBOURNE, VIC 3002 Phone 61 3 8682 2869 Email [email protected] Web www.parliament.vic.gov.au/eic This report is also available online at the Committee’s website. iv Economy and Infrastructure Committee Contents Preliminaries Committee membership iii Committee staff iv Chair’s foreword xi Executive summary xiii Recommendations xvii 1 Introduction 1 1.1 Background to the Inquiry 1 1.1.1 A tragic occurrence 1 1.1.2 The consequences of the Chol case 1 1.2 Terms of reference 2 1.3 Breed‑specific legislation in Victoria 3 1.3.1 What is breed‑specific legislation? 3 1.3.2 The history of breed‑specific legislation 3 1.3.3 Regulation by deed 5 1.3.4 Breed‑specific legislation revisited 5 1.4 Companion animals in Australian life 6 1.4.1 Dog ownership in Australia 6 1.4.2 Health and social benefits of dog ownership 7 1.5 Stakeholder debates on breed‑specific legislation 9 1.5.1 The science behind breed‑specific legislation 9 1.5.2 Moral panics 11 1.5.3 The impact on owners and families of declared dogs 12 1.5.4 The need to protect the community 13 1.5.5 The effectiveness of breed‑specific legislation 14 1.5.6 Views expressed to the Committee 15 1.6 A note on Greyhounds 15 1.7 The work of the Committee 16 1.8 Structure of the report 17 PART A – CONTEXT 19 2 Dog attacks in Victoria 21 2.1 Introduction 21 2.2 How big a problem are dog attacks in Victoria? 21 2.2.1 Data from local councils 23 2.2.2 Data from Victorian hospitals 23 2.2.3 The total number of dog attacks in Victoria 27 2.3 Are things getting worse or better? 28 Inquiry into the legislative and regulatory framework relating to restricted‑breed dogs v Contents 2.4 The nature of dog attacks in Victoria 30 2.4.1 Who are the victims? 30 2.4.2 Where do dog attacks occur? 33 2.4.3 Under what circumstances do dog bites occur? 34 2.5 Data from interstate and overseas 36 2.5.1 A comparison between Victorian data and other jurisdictions 37 2.5.2 Male dogs and dogs that are not de‑sexed 38 2.5.3 Fatal dog attacks 38 2.6 Conclusion 40 3 Law and regulation relating to dog control and management 43 3.1 Introduction 43 3.2 Commonwealth responsibilities for dog control 43 3.3 The Victorian Domestic Animals Act 1994 44 3.3.1 The role of local councils 44 3.3.2 Restricted‑breed dogs 46 3.3.3 Dangerous and menacing dogs 49 3.3.4 Destruction powers 52 3.3.5 Greyhounds 55 3.4 Criticisms of the Domestic Animals Act and suggestions for reform 56 3.5 Other legislative provisions 58 3.5.1 The Crimes Act 1958 58 3.5.2 The law of scienter 59 3.6 Practical problems with applying the restricted‑breed legislation 59 3.6.1 VCAT appeals 60 3.6.2 Unintended consequences 62 3.7 Is restricted‑breed legislation superfluous? 64 3.8 Other state and territory legislation 65 3.8.1 New South Wales 68 3.9 Conclusion 69 4 Dog breeds, breed identification and dog aggression 71 4.1 Introduction 71 4.2 What is a dog’s breed? 72 4.3 Identification problems 73 4.3.1 Pedigree 73 4.3.2 Visual identification 74 4.3.3 Genetics 79 4.4 Is there a Pit Bull problem? 80 4.4.1 Defining aggression 81 4.4.2 Size and strength 83 4.4.3 Studies on breed and harm 84 4.4.4 How big a problem are Pit Bulls? 87 vi Economy and Infrastructure Committee Contents 4.5 Evaluations of breed‑specific legislation 88 4.5.1 The evidence 89 4.5.2 Interpreting the evidence 91 4.5.3 Departure from BSL at an international level 92 4.6 Contributory factors in dog aggression and dog attacks 92 4.6.1 Multifactorial explanations 93 4.6.2 Genes and breed 94 4.6.3 Other factors 95 4.7 Breed substitution 98 4.8 Conclusion 98 5 Greyhounds – A particular type of restricted breed? 101 5.1 Introduction 101 5.1.1 Racing and non‑racing Greyhounds 102 5.1.2 Greyhound welfare 103 5.2 The nature of Greyhounds 103 5.2.1 Levels of aggression 104 5.2.2 Prey drive 105 5.3 Muzzling 106 5.3.1 The negative consequences of muzzling 106 5.3.2 Alternatives to muzzling 108 5.3.3 The Committee’s view 109 5.3.4 Off‑leash areas 110 5.4 Temperament testing, adoption and rehoming 110 5.4.1 The Greyhound Adoption Program 111 5.4.2 The view of Greyhound Racing Victoria 111 5.4.3 Criticisms of the Greyhound Adoption Program 112 5.4.4 Independent evaluation 116 5.4.5 Increasing the number of options for assessing the temperaments of Greyhounds 116 5.5 Conclusion 118 PART B – STRATEGIES TO ADDRESS THE PROBLEM 119 6 Education strategies 121 6.1 Introduction 121 6.2 What education is needed? 123 6.3 Who needs education? 124 6.3.1 Educating children 124 6.3.2 Educating parents 126 6.3.3 Educating other adults 126 6.3.4 Selecting a dog – the need for more informed choices 128 6.4 State Government programs in Victoria 129 6.4.1 Victorian programs 129 6.4.2 Evaluating Victoria’s programs 136 Inquiry into the legislative and regulatory framework relating to restricted‑breed dogs vii Contents 6.5 Local government programs in Victoria 140 6.5.1 Individual councils 141 6.5.2 Limited resources 143 6.6 Interstate programs 144 6.6.1 Townsville City Council (Queensland) – Who Are Your Pets Hurting? 144 6.6.2 Nedlands City Council (Western Australia) – Dog Behavioural Management Program 148 6.7 The role of media in disseminating messages on dog safety 149 6.8 Conclusion 151 7 Responsible pet ownership as a strategy to reduce dog attacks 153 7.1 Introduction 153 7.2 Registration and microchipping 154 7.2.1 Dog registration 155 7.2.2 Microchipping 158 7.2.3 Registration incentives 159 7.2.4 Return‑home policies 161 7.3 De‑sexing dogs 163 7.4 Enforcement for non‑compliance 165 7.4.1 The importance of enforcement 165 7.4.2 Increased penalties 166 7.4.3 Additional flexibility for local councils 167 7.4.4 The Committee’s view 171 7.5 Information sharing 172 7.6 Temperament testing 173 7.7 Licensing of owners or mandatory education in responsible ownership? 175 7.8 Strategies in other jurisdictions 176 7.8.1 England 177 7.8.2 The Calgary Model 180 7.9 Conclusion 189 8 Data collection, reporting and research 191 8.1 Introduction 191 8.2 Data collection 191 8.2.1 Data from hospitals 192 8.2.2 Data from local councils 193 8.2.3 Surveys 195 8.3 Local council reporting 196 8.4 A national system of record keeping 199 8.5 Further research on the causes of dog attack 200 8.6 Conclusion 204 viii Economy and Infrastructure Committee Contents 9 Improving Victoria’s dog control model – the way forward 205 9.1 Introduction 205 9.2 To repeal or not repeal? 206 9.2.1 Option one – maintain the existing restrictions on Pit Bulls (no change) 206 9.2.2 Option two – remove all breed‑specific provisions relating to Pit Bulls 206 9.2.3 Option three – allow Pit Bulls to be registered but maintain other restrictions 207 9.3 Is breed‑specific legislation a reasonable approach? 207 9.4 The problem of identifying Pit Bulls 208 9.4.1 Problems for local councils 208 9.4.2 An independent panel to identify breeds 210 9.5 The way forward 212 9.5.1 Allowing the registration of Pit Bulls 212 9.5.2 Shifting the focus of local council officers 213 9.6 Supporting local councils 215 9.6.1 State Government guidance 215 9.6.2 A state‑wide policy 218 9.6.3 Financial support 221 9.7 Other reforms 222 9.7.1 The Australian Veterinary Association’s model legislative framework 222 9.7.2 A national strategy on dog aggression 224 9.8 The need for continual re‑assessment 225 9.9 A final word 226 Appendices 1 Terms of reference 227 2 Submitters and witnesses 229 3 Statistics on dog‑related injuries in Victoria 237 4 Key aspects of dog control legislation in other states and territories 239 Bibliography 249 Inquiry into the legislative and regulatory framework relating to restricted‑breed dogs ix Chair’s foreword Reducing the number of dog attacks is important.

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