Barking dogs
Prior to lodging a barking complaint please read the
Barking Dogs (complainant) information which will inform you of the process for lodging a complaint.
Dogs communicate naturally by barking and at low levels is not an offence. Barking may alert its owners to danger or intruders or a number of other issues. However, a dog that persistently barks can be a nuisance. If a dog barks continually without reason, the cause may be lack of training and exercise, loneliness, inadequate shelter, ill health or deliberate or unintentional provocation by people or roaming dogs.
If your neighbour has a dog that constantly barks we encourage you to speak to them in person about the issues or alternatively leave a Neighbourhood Notification Letter in the mailbox in the first instance. A copy of the letter is available for download below.
Once this initial contact has been made please allow 14 days for them to rectify the issues. If there is not sufficient improvement and you believe the barking is still at nuisance levels please return to the website and complete the online barking complaint form.
Please Note: Complainants also need to complete a form 7 (official complaint form) which can be found in the Documents area below. This form is a Dog Act requirement. Please complete and attach as an attachment to the barking form submission otherwise it will be needed prior to engagement with the dog owner if the initial 7 day diary is found to prove nuisance issues.