Thirteen German shepherds and 40 cats were uplifted from a Pāpāmoa property in Tauranga City Council's 'largest-ever' seizure of animals. Graphic / NZHerald
Thirteen German shepherd dogs and 40 cats have been removed from a Pāpāmoa home in what Tauranga City Council has described as the “largest-ever” seizure of its kind.
The council says the animals were removed from a 705sq m residential property on January 11, with dogs found in the house, garage and yard.
It says all of the dogs were underweight and had health issues. Eight with parvovirus had to be put down.
The operation involved the council, police and SPCA.
The incident was described as the council’s “largest-ever” dog seizure in an executive update to city commissioners on Monday.
Documents detailed alleged breaches of the Dog Control Act including 12 unregistered dogs, failure to microchip, breach of a barking abatement notice, false statement on a dog registration form, and keeping more than two dogs per occupier of a property.
Council team leader of animal services Brent Lincoln told the Bay of Plenty Times his team carried out a search warrant at the address after receiving “numerous complaints” about the number of dogs there and loud, persistent barking.
He would not reveal the address for privacy reasons.
The 13 German shepherds were removed by the council. The SPCA removed the 40 cats.
“This is the largest single seizure of dogs by Tauranga City Council.
“Most seizures that take place are for one or two dogs,” Lincoln said.
Lincoln said most of the dogs contracted canine parvovirus (parvo) as they had not been vaccinated.
The New Zealand Veterinary Association describes parvo as a highly contagious, viral disease affecting the gastrointestinal tract of dogs.
Symptoms can start as lethargy, lack of appetite and fever before progressing to vomiting and bloody diarrhoea. The disease can rapidly worsen and severe cases often result in death.
“Sadly, eight of the dogs succumbed,” Lincoln said.
“Under the advice of a vet and in consultation with the dogs’ owner, the decision was made to put them down.
“The remaining dogs have gone back to the property, with one still being in our care.”
Lincoln said some aspects of the situation had been resolved but other matters were being reviewed and were subject to legal advice.
During the operation, a dog control officer received a minor bite mark on the hand while removing a dog.
At 705sq m (0.0705 hectares), the property was a little bigger than the area of two-and-a-half tennis courts.
Under the Tauranga Dog Management Bylaw 2018, a person wanting to keep more than two dogs on a property must apply for a kennel licence.
The owner would need to show that their dogs were all registered and microchipped, and that the council had not received justified complaints about their dogs such as roaming or excessive barking, Lincoln said.
The council could require owners to reduce the number of dogs to two.
“Dogs are allowed to bark. However, they are not allowed to bark loudly and persistently to the point where they can cause nuisance to neighbours,” Lincoln said.
“Owners of barking dogs causing a nuisance may need to move the dog to a different part of their section, screen off street views, get help from a dog trainer or try an anti-barking collar.
“If an owner doesn’t take steps to stop their dog from causing a nuisance, they may be required to rehome their dog.”
Lincoln said police were typically required whenever a search warrant was executed for a dog seizure event.
A dog control officer can enter a private property for the purpose of the Dog Control Act but a search warrant was needed to enter the house if it was suspected dogs were being kept there, he said.
The dogs in this incident were removed from within the house, garage and a rear yard.
A police spokeswoman said local officers attended in a support capacity to the council, which was the lead agency. There were no arrests and no further police involvement, she said.
A SPCA spokeswoman said it was investigating matters relating to this property and could not make any other comment on the matter, including details relating to the cats, for now.
Kiri Gillespie is an assistant news director and a senior journalist for the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua Daily Post, specialising in local politics and city issues. She was a finalist for the Voyager Media Awards Regional Journalist of the Year in 2021.
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