22Euthanasia of dogs

22 Euthanasia of dogs

(1)  A person with care or charge of a dog must not cause or allow the dog to be destroyed unless the destruction is carried out humanely by a veterinary surgeon or a person who is acting under the direct supervision of a veterinary surgeon.

Penalty:  Fine not exceeding 10 penalty units.

(2)  It is a defence in proceedings for an offence under subregulation (1) if the defendant establishes that –

(a) the dog was humanely destroyed; and

(b) it was not possible to find a veterinary surgeon within a reasonable time; and

(c) the delay in waiting for a veterinary surgeon would have caused undue suffering to the dog.

(3)  For the purposes of these regulations, a dog is destroyed humanely if –

(a) the dog is rendered suddenly unconscious; and

(b) the death of the dog occurs while it is unconscious.

(4)  For the purposes of these regulations, a person (the supervised person) is under the direct supervision of another person (the supervisor) if the supervisor –

(a) is at the same location as the supervised person while the activity that is to be supervised is taking place; and

(b) provides instructions and guidance to the supervised person in relation to the activity being supervised, if necessary; and

(c) oversees and evaluates the performance of the activity by the supervised person; and

(d) is able to immediately render assistance to the supervised person, if required, at any time during which the activity is being undertaken.