I sometimes enjoy looking up definitions of things that are part of our daily lives. Some things are so ubiquitous that their definition seems to be part of our everyday happenings, they don’t seem to belong to a dictionary (or an online encyclopedia). Pets, how would you define them? They’re everywhere, either you own one, someone close to you owns one, you want to own one, you used to own one or you don’t want to own one. Well, Google defines it as “a domestic or tamed animal kept for companionship or pleasure”.
Too narrow? Too broad? Too accurate? Too literal? Your call. We can’t deny that a definition of a pet might be as personal and subjective as the number of pets and their owners in the world. If you own one and it’s close to you now, read the definition above out loud, look at your pet’s eyes and see if it fits (my guess is it won’t fit at all!).
Anyway, enough of small talk. Let’s get to the facts. According to Animal Medicines Australia, there are 29 million pets in Australia (four million more than the human population!), 3 out of 5 households in the country own a pet and 90% of all households have had a pet at some point. The most popular pet? Dogs. Cats are ranked second on the popularity list followed by fish, birds, small mammals and reptiles (do insects count? because I’ve definitely grown a relationship with spiders!).
Based on these numbers, the chances of you owning a pet in Brunswick are high! I have put a list of three things you should know if you own a pet or if you’re about to get one:
1. Pet registration. Keep a close eye on this one because, by State regulation, every cat or dog over three months of age must be registered with their local City Council (if they’re not you might get a fine).
Also, dogs and cats must be microchipped before being registered for the first time. Keep in mind that you can transfer your cat or dog’s registration, you must renew your registration every year before April 10 (the Council will send you a notification), fostering dogs or cats must follow the same rules.
Image: Pexels
2. Desexing your dog or cat. Owners of these popular pets are encouraged (in the case of dog owners) and obliged (in the case of cat owners) to remove the reproductive organs of their furry companions. Why? Mainly to prevent unwanted young being born and to reduce behaviours like aggression, roaming or scent marking. For cats in particular, desexing helps to reduce the number of stray cats, which protects our native wildlife and habitats.
Where to desex them? In Brunswick, we have Brunswick Central Vet Clinic who are happy to send you a quote via email. Also, the West Brunswick Veterinary clinic offers this service.
Image: Charles Deluvio
3. Lost and found pets. We never want to be in this position but if your pet ever goes missing, do the following:
- Contact Moreland’s pound provider Epping Animal Welfare Facility.
- Complete an RSPCA Lost Pets report
- Post on a local Facebook group like the Lost and Found Pets and Animals – Moreland and surrounding areas or Brunswick Good Karma Network.
- Ask everyone around if they’ve seen your pet or look for it everywhere (I mean everywhere, it might be hiding somewhere in your own house!)
Image: Noelle Otto
We hope these items were useful, you and your pet deserve the best care! You can learn more details about all of them on Moreland’s City Council website.
Is there something else you’d like to know about pets or other daily lives happenings in Brunswick, let us know in the comments 🙂
We found the cute cover photo of this article on Unsplash.com and the photographer is Greg Lippert.
