Cat owners in on Act

Busselton and Dunsborough veterinary hospitals have reported increased demand for microchipping of cats in the lead up to the introduction of WA’s new cat ownership laws.

The Cat Act, passed in November 2011, requires compulsory identification of the pets, through microchipping and registration, and sterilisation.

Busselton Veterinary Hospital office manager Kylie Gibbs is surprised by how compliant cat owners are being, with a big uptake in microchipping.

“We’ve been offering microchipping at below half-price and have seen so many take-ups,” she said.

“It seems like everyone got a bit of a shock when they received the letters from the City (of Busselton) regarding the new laws.

“We’ve had a few unhappy owners, such as people who keep their cats indoors.”

She hopes the WA laws will give City rangers more powers to help reduce the number of unwanted cats and kittens.

Dunsborough veterinarian Seamus Henry receives at least one call a day about microchipping.

“We’ve always been proactive in encouraging microchipping and the current uptake on microchipping at the time of desexing is good,” he said.

Dr Henry believes there will be some public backlash due to the retrospective nature of the law.