Pet or Pest? Laws

Control of dogs under the Conservation Act:

• Dogs are excluded from national parks.
• The following areas are Controlled Dog Areas, they are off-limits to dogs unless owners obtain a special permit from DoC – all national, scenic, nature and scientific reserves; all wilderness, ecological and sanctuary areas; and all wildlife sanctuaries, refuges and management reserves.
• The Conservation Act allows Department of Conservation staff to shoot dogs if they are bothering native wildlife.

Dog owner’s responsibilities:

• Under the Dog Control Act 1996, dog owners must take all reasonable steps to ensure that the dog does not injure, endanger, or cause distress to any protected wildlife.
• Permits can be obtained for hunting dogs to go into areas damaged by pests such as goats and pigs, because they help control the problem.

It is illegal under the Wildlife Act to own more than two ferrets without a permit from the Department of Conservation. Ferrets are banned from offshore islands, including Stewart Island.

Forest and Bird would like a law to say that people cannot own ferrets as pets in New Zealand. In 1999 the Department of Conservation asked the public what they thought about ferret laws and more than three-quarters said they would like pet ferrets to be banned. November 2000 the Department of Conservation had yet to act on these recommendations.