General News
21 December, 2025
Dogs at centre of feedback
FOUR key issues have emerged from community feedback to Cassowary Coast Regional Council’s proposed changes to local laws – with dogs No.1.
They are:
The desexing of dogs and cats
Dog off-leash areas
The introduction of wildlife-friendly barbless wire fencing for new or maintained stock fences
The requirement to place wheelie bins out 12 hours prior to collection time.
More than 200 submissions were received and Mayor Teresa Millwood said council would consider every submission made as part of the community consultation aspect of the review process and will publish the outcomes in due course.
She said 223 submissions were received, which “is an excellent result and shows how dedicated Cassowary Coast residents are to their communities”.
“Residents are really passionate about these proposed changes. Hundreds of people have put their views forward,” Cr Millwood said.
“And I really welcome that. We need to know what people think. Feedback like this helps guide our decision-making process.
“It shows just how much people care about the issues in the communities in which they live.
“And they’re also committed to the vision of making the Cassowary Coast the most liveable tropical community.
“To residents: I want you to know that we’re hearing what you’re telling us. You’ve spoken and we’ve listened.
“The proposed changes can affect how people live and work, after all, so thank you to everyone who put pen to paper and sent in feedback.
“We will be considering each and every one of these responses.
“A report will then be written and presented to council. It will be made publicly available, so people will be able to get a good understanding of what the submissions said.”
The public consultation period was open for one month, from 26 September to 24 October 2025.
As per council policy, the next step in the process will involve council deciding, at a future meeting, whether to make the proposed local laws as advertised – with or without amendments – or to not proceed.
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