New South Wales Consolidated Acts

COMPANION ANIMALS ACT 1998 - SECT 48

48 Destruction orders

(1) A
"destruction order" is an order of a Court that the owner of a dog destroy the dog or cause the dog to be destroyed, or that a dog be destroyed by some person authorised by the Court, within the period specified in the order.

(2) A destruction order can be made by a Court in the following circumstances--

(a) on conviction of the owner of the dog of an offence under section 35A of the Crimes Act 1900 , or under section 16, 17, 49, 51 or 56 of this Act,

(b) on confirming the declaration by an authorised officer of a council that a dog is dangerous or a council's refusal to revoke such a declaration.

(3) However, a Court must not make a destruction order unless it is satisfied that the making of a control order, or an order permanently removing the dog from its owner (which the Court is, by this subsection, authorised to make), will not be sufficient to protect the public from any threat posed by the dog.

(3A) A Court must, except in exceptional circumstances, make a destruction order on conviction of the owner of the dog of an offence involving the serious injury or death of a person caused by the dog.

(4) If the Court makes an order permanently removing a dog from its owner, the dog is to be dealt with under Part 7 as if it were a seized animal. However, the dog is not to be sold to the owner from whom it was removed by the order.

(5) The making of an order by a Court under section 10 of the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 in respect of a person charged with an offence is to be treated for the purposes of this section as a conviction of the person for the offence.

(6) A destruction order can be made in addition to any other order made by the Court in the proceedings concerned.

(7) A destruction order is sufficient authority for the destruction of a dog. The dog must be destroyed in a manner that causes it to die quickly and without unnecessary suffering.