Animal Companion Management Program
Companion Animal Welfare Program has been successfully delivered to four communities by MacDonnell Shire Council with the support of vet Dr Robert Irving
Over the past few weeks MacDonnell Shire Council has completed another successful Companion Animal Welfare Program to Walungurru/Kintore, Warumpi/Papunya, Utju/Areyonga and Watiyawanu/Mt Liebig communities.
Dr Robert Irving travelled house to house along with members of the MacDonnell Shire Council’s Civil Works team to consult the owners about the conditions of their dogs and administer the drug Ivermectin to control parasites such as scabies.
The owners are also consulted about the option of giving female dogs a contraceptive injection that prevents the animal in coming into heat for 6 months. In extreme cases where a dog is sick or numbers are too great for households to manage the owner is again consulted and given the option of euthanasing the animal.
The regular vet visits form part of MacDonnell Shire Council’s Animal Management Plan. It is primarily to improve the health and wellbeing of community members and their pets, whilst ensuring the number of dogs in a community is regulated. The consultation between the vet and individual community members is an integral part of the process to assist local community members in deciding how to best look after and manage their dogs.
| COMMUNITY | IVERMECTIN | CONTRACEPTIVES | EUTHANASIED |
| Walungurru / Kintore | 84 | 27 | 4 |
| Warumpi / Papunya | 30 | 0 | 5 |
| Utju / Areyonga | 43 | 16 (long term implants) | 33 |
| Watiyawanu / Mt Liebig | 26 | 0 | 0 |
| TOTAL | 183 | 43 | 42 |
Note: Table shows statistics from last community visit
The program has been running since the commencement of MacDonnell Shire Council in 2008 and will continue to be delivered as one of its core local government services. Each community receives a minimum of 4 – 6 vet visits per year based on the community size and population. The neighbouring outstations receive the vet visits as part of the municipal services the MacDonnell Shire Council provides to these homelands.