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New Zealand law explained for everyone

Dog Control Act 1996

Custody of dogs

69: Impounding and subsequent disposal of dog

You could also call this:

"What happens to your dog if it's taken by the authorities and how you can get it back"

If you have a dog that is seized by a constable, dog control officer, or dog ranger, it will be taken to a pound. The dog will stay there until it is returned to you or disposed of. You can find more information about what happens when a dog is seized in section 52 of the Dog Control Act.

When a dog is taken to the pound, the territorial authority will try to find the owner. If they find you, they will send you a notice saying your dog is in the pound. You have 7 days to claim your dog and pay any fees.

If the owner of the dog is not known, the territorial authority can sell, destroy, or dispose of the dog after 7 days. The money from selling the dog will go towards paying any fees you owe. Any extra money will go into the territorial authority's dog control account.

The territorial authority keeps a record of each dog they take in and what happens to it. If your dog is sold or destroyed, you still have to pay any fees you owe. In some cases, a dog can be seized by a court order and destroyed. You can also find more information about destroying dogs in section 139 of the Animal Welfare Act 1999.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM375442.

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Crime and justice > Police and safetyHousing and property > Land use
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68: Pound fees, or

"Costs for when your dog goes to the pound"

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69A: Impounded dog must be microchipped and registered before release, or

"Before you get your impounded dog back, it must be microchipped and registered."

69Impounding and subsequent disposal of dog

  1. Except as provided in subsection (7) and sections 70, 71, and 71A, where any constable, dog control officer, or dog ranger seizes or is given custody of any dog under this Act, that dog shall, unless it is returned to its owner under subsection (3) or subsection (6) of section 52, be impounded until it is disposed of in accordance with this section.

  2. As soon as practicable after any dog has been impounded, the territorial authority shall, in the case of a dog wearing a current registration label or disc or where the owner of the dog is known through some other means, give written notice to the owner that the dog has been impounded and that unless the dog is claimed and any fee paid within 7 days of the receipt of that notice, it may be sold, destroyed, or otherwise disposed of in such manner as the territorial authority thinks fit; and after the expiry of that period the territorial authority may so dispose of the dog.

  3. Where the owner of the dog is not known and cannot be identified from the dog registration label or disc, the territorial authority may, after the expiration of 7 days after the date of seizure of the dog, sell, destroy, or otherwise dispose of the dog in such manner as it thinks fit.

  4. The proceeds of the sale of any dog under subsection (2) or subsection (3) may be applied by the territorial authority towards any fees payable to it under this Act by the owner of the dog, and any surplus shall be paid into the dog control account of the territorial authority.

  5. The territorial authority shall maintain a record of each dog impounded by it and the method of disposal of that dog.

  6. The sale, destruction, or other disposal of a dog under this section shall not relieve the former owner of the dog of the liability for the payment of any fees payable under this Act.

  7. Nothing in subsections (1) to (3) shall apply in any case where a constable, dog control officer, or dog ranger seizes or is given custody of a dog pursuant to an order of the District Court that the dog be destroyed.

  8. This section does not limit or affect the power of the territorial authority to destroy a dog under section 139 of the Animal Welfare Act 1999.

Compare
  • 1982 No 42 s 66
Notes
  • Section 69(1): amended, on , by section 29(10)(a) of the Dog Control Amendment Act 2006 (2006 No 23).
  • Section 69(1): amended, on , by section 29(10)(b) of the Dog Control Amendment Act 2006 (2006 No 23).
  • Section 69(8): added, on , by section 194 of the Animal Welfare Act 1999 (1999 No 142).