New South Wales Consolidated Acts

IMPOUNDING ACT 1993 - SECT 41

41 Special power to destroy animals

(1) An authorised person may destroy, or remove and destroy, any animal found unattended in a public place if he or she believes on reasonable grounds that the animal is a danger to the public or is likely to die from a disease or injury from which it is suffering. The person may then dispose of the carcass of the animal.

(2) An authorised person may remove any dead animal found in a place (whether public or not) and may dispose of the carcass of the animal.

(3) This section does not apply to an animal that is a threatened species (as defined in the Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995 ), protected fauna (as defined in the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1974 ) or is in a national park, historic site, nature reserve, state game reserve, state conservation area, regional park (other than a park under the care, control and management of a council), karst conservation reserve or Aboriginal area (as defined in that Act).

(4) The expense incurred in exercising a power under subsection (1) may be recovered as a debt from the owner of the animal. The expense incurred in exercising a power under subsection (2) may be recovered as a debt from either the owner of the dead animal or the occupier of the place in which it was found.

(5) The person who has the right of recovery conferred by subsection (4) is the council under whose authority the authorised person acted or (if the authorised person is a police officer) the Commissioner of Police.

(6) In this section:
"animal" means any creature (other than a human being).
"authorised person" means a police officer or a person generally or specially authorised by a council to exercise powers under this section.