Rules on Animals and Animal Husbandry

Please do not bring animals to the Sanctuary without prior agreement.
Existing pets may come with new residents, if they are properly cared for / fenced as appropriate (see below) and agreed upon with consensus on a case-by-case basis :)

Compliance with Moreton Bay Regional Council local laws

Firestone Sanctuary also needs to comply with local council laws in regards to animals being kept on the property, including allowances for overall numbers of each type of animal.

Moreton Bay Regional Council requires, under Local Law 2:

• cats and dogs need to be registered with council. The owner of an animal will be responsible for this cost.
• "Dogs and cats must wear the tag supplied by the local government".
• "all domestic animals, including cats, be kept on their own property and prevented from wandering or escaping", including creating a proper enclosure. Local Law 2 states: "A person who keeps an animal must maintain a proper enclosure to prevent the animal from wandering or escaping from the person’s land".
• Proper standards for keeping an animal must be met.

The council does systematic inspections to check properties for signs of animals being kept.

It is the responsibility of land owners to control restricted invasive species on their land generally. Note that cats and dogs are considered restricted invasive species by council.

Resident space

Because Firestone Sanctuary itself does not have adequate fencing covering all boundaries (and never will, for it would prevent free passage of native animals), a particular resident's personal residential space is treated as their responsibility for the interpretation of the MBRC laws above. That means that a domestic animal must not leave the defined boundary space of the resident unless it is

• actively monitored (e.g. on a leash) by the owner
• in a shared space that residents have, by consensus, agreed can be an animal space and has the appropriate fencing or enclosure.

For all intents and purposes, the shared space of the Sanctuary should be treated the same as public land in terms of animal permissions.