Animal Welfare Act 1993

A person must not do any act, or omit to do any duty, which causes or is likely to cause unreasonable and unjustifiable pain or suffering to an animal. In the case of – a body corporate, a fine not exceeding 500 penalty units; or a natural person, a fine not exceeding 100 penalty units or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months, or both.

Without limiting the generality of subsection (1), a person is guilty of an offence under that subsection if the person – wounds, mutilates, tortures, overrides, overdrives, overworks, abuses, beats, torments or terrifies an animal; or overloads or overcrowds an animal; or drives, conveys, carries or packs an animal in a manner or position or in circumstances that subjects or may subject it to unreasonable and unjustifiable pain or suffering; or works, rides, drives or uses an animal when it is unfit for the purpose; or has possession or custody of an animal that is confined, constrained or otherwise unable to provide for itself and fails to provide the animal with appropriate and sufficient food, drink, shelter or exercise; or abandons an animal of a species usually kept in a state of confinement or for domestic purposes; or has possession or custody of a sick or injured animal and fails to provide veterinary or other appropriate treatment for the animal; or administers to or otherwise uses in respect of an animal an injurious drug or a toxic or noxious substance except for– medical curative purposes; or scientific research purposes; or normal management procedures; or euthanasia; or the purposes of controlling a disease specified in the Biosecurity Act 2019 as a disease to which this section applies; or the purposes of controlling a pest animal in accordance with the pest register; or in the course of any sport or public performance or in the training for any sport or public performance, applies or exposes an electronic device to an animal; or uses a spur, or other like appliance, with sharpened rowels on an animal; or uses a pronged collar, or a similar collar, on an animal; or does any other prescribed act.

In this section – abandons, in relation to an animal, includes the relinquishing of the care or charge of the animal without ensuring that another person has, or will immediately take, care or charge of the animal; appropriate and sufficient means – in relation to the provision of food to an animal, that food of sufficient quality is provided – in sufficient quantity to meet the nutritional requirements of maintaining the animal in reasonable body condition and, if appropriate, allowing for growth and reproduction; and as often as appropriate for the digestive system and metabolism of the animal; or in relation to the provision of drink, that fluids of sufficient quality are provided in sufficient quantity to keep the animal hydrated at all times; or in relation to the provision of shelter, that shelter which affords protection for the animal from the adverse effects of weather conditions is provided; pest animal means an animal of a kind or class which is entered in the pest register; pest register means the pest register established and maintained under section 8A; pronged collar means a collar, designed for use on animals, that consists of a series of links or segments with prongs, teeth or blunted open ends turned towards the animal’s neck so that, when the collar is tightened, it pinches the skin around the animal’s neck.