THE citizens' jury looking into dog and cat management practices will have its final meeting today.
Sustainability, Environment and Conservation Minister Ian Hunter said each year more than 10,000 unwanted cats and dogs are euthanised in pounds and shelters around the state, and it’s a tragedy that must end.
“By seeking the advice of a citizens’ jury, we’re separating the problem from the emotion and the politics and asking for a solution the community wants,” he said.
Minister Hunter said the final meeting concludes five weeks of intense research by the 35-person jury, selected at random from the South Australian population.
“The jurors have heard from a range of expert witnesses, from vets, animal shelters and policy experts through to council staff at the frontline of dog and cat management,” he said.
“This is an independent process, so I don’t know what the final verdict will be, but I look forward to receiving their report and tabling it, unedited, in parliament.”
The citizens’ jury was convened in response to calls for desexing to be made mandatory during an unrelated consultation on moves to crack down on puppy farms and better regulate the dog and cat breeding industry.
“This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity for significant reform of our dog and cat laws, the likes of which we haven’t seen since the Dog and Cat Management Act was first proclaimed in 1995,” Mr Hunter said.
“The jury’s verdict will be considered alongside our proposed code of practice for breeders, crackdowns on puppy farms and moves to empower councils to better enforce the law, on which
we have received more than 2300 submissions.”
Forty public submissions were made to the jury through the state government’s YourSAy website, with a lengthy discussion forum on the site also forming part of the evidence for the jury to consider.
Presentations to the jury by expert witnesses have been made available on YouTube and the jury’s final report will be uploaded to the yoursay.sa.gov.au discussion page once the verdict has been delivered on August 12.
Join the conversation on social media by using the #dogcatjury tag.
