NSWIn ForceAct
Companion Animals Act 1998
20Dogs defecating in public place
Start here
Get a plain-English read of 20
Turn the raw legal text into a practical explanation grounded in Companion Animals Act 1998.
#### 20 Dogs defecating in public place
20 Dogs defecating in public place
> > (1) If a dog defecates in a public place—
> >
> > > (a) the owner of the dog, or
> >
> > > (b) if the owner is not present at the relevant time and another person who is of or above the age of 16 years is in charge of the dog at that time—that other person,
> >
> > must immediately remove the dog’s faeces and properly dispose of them.
> >
> > Maximum penalty—8 penalty units.
>
> > (2) Proper disposal includes disposal in a rubbish receptacle designated for the purpose by the local authority. It is the duty of a local authority for a place that is commonly used for exercising dogs (including an off-leash area) to provide sufficient rubbish receptacles for the proper disposal of the faeces of dogs that defecate in the place.
>
> > (3) This section does not apply when the dog is an assistance animal being used bona fide by a person with a disability to assist the person and the person’s disability makes compliance by the person with this section not reasonably practicable.
>
> **s 20:** Am 2001 No 23, Sch 1 \[17\]; 2005 No 101, Sch 1 \[37\].