With H5 bird flu detections ramping up across the country, Nambucca Valley councillors have discussed limiting the movement of dogs on the beach if the situation worsens.
Councillor Sue Jenvey warned the disease “spreading into the mammal community is serious”.
“We're going to come across dead birds at beaches, I presume,” Jenvey told council’s August 26 meeting.
Disease taking flight: To date, NSW has had 16 confirmed cases of H5 bird flu.
Most of these cases were migratory seabirds on the South Coast, however two were at Hawks Nest in the MidCoast local government area.
The H5 strain has caused mass deaths of poultry, wild birds and sea mammals abroad.
On Friday, a dead dolphin in South Australia returned a positive test for the disease.
In Australia, the current risk to people is considered low.
Councillor concern: In rare cases, pets like cats and dogs can get sick if they come into contact with infected animals.
During the meeting, Jenvey questioned whether more could be done to reduce this risk, by requiring dogs to be kept on a lead at the beach.
She compared the potential restriction to “wearing PPE during COVID”.
What could change?: To change the rules, council would need to make amendments to its Companion Animal Policy.
Councillor David Jones called on council to make any required amendments now, ready for when the situation escalates.
“If we have birds literally dropping out of the sky here, our companion animals are the ones that are going to be affected first,” he said.
Not far enough: Jones argued the amendments should cover all off-leash areas, and not just the beach.
However, he stressed the changes should only apply if the bird flu situation locally becomes “catastrophic”.
Potential to be unpopular: Council’s acting general manager, David Moloney, said companion animal legislation is “a very hot topic”.
“Making such a change, particularly so close after COVID … may not be appropriate.”
He encouraged community consultation before any change and said regulating the proposed restrictions would be “very difficult” due to staffing limitations.
What’s next: Council will seek guidance on how to amend the Companion Animal Policy related to off-leash areas, should the emergency evolve.
The community is advised to avoid dead birds and report them to the Emergency Animal Disease Hotline on 1800 675 888.