Potential phone delays

10:00AM 07 Jun 2023

Thanks for your patience if you experience a delay when ringing our call centre. Please email us on enquiries@npdc.govt.nz or drop into one of our offices. 

Dogs and animals
Kararehe

Animals

We provide a range of services for situations involving animals in New Plymouth District. We are responsible for enforcing regulations for animal owners. Some of these services and regulations are outlined below.

For complete information on our role see the bylaws page. There is more information for dog owners in the dogs section. 


Keeping animals in urban areas

There are rules for keeping some types of animals in urban areas. The main regulations are outlined below - click the buttons to find out more. For more specific information and rules please see the Animal Bylaw.

Hive

Beekeeping

You can keep bees on your property if they are not a nuisance to others and are not dangerous to people's health. There are limits to the number of hives you can keep on an urban property. They are:

  • three hives on a lot size less than 600m2
  • five hives on a lot size between 601m2 and 750m2
  • seven hives on a lot size greater than 750m2. 

If you want to have more hives on your property you will need to request permission from us.

Two cats

Cats

No more than three cats or kittens over the age of six months can be kept per house in an urban area without NPDC consent.
Cattle

Cattle

Cattle may be kept in urban areas provided they are kept no less than 2m from a boundary of any adjoining premises and are not, in the opinion of an NPDC officer, causing an annoyance.

Woman holding dog

Dogs

You can keep two dogs in the city. To be able to keep more than two dogs on an urban property (less than 1 hectare) you must apply for consent which requires a property inspection. There is no charge for an inspection. See our dog registration page for further information and consent forms. 

Ferret

Ferrets and stoats

You cannot keep ferrets and stoats. Under the Bio-security Act it is illegal to buy, breed or keep ferrets.

Pigs

Pigs

Pigs may be kept in urban areas providing they don't cause a nuisance, aren't a health risk or offensive. Pigstys must comply with the Building Act 2004 and any discharge from a piggery must comply with the RMA and requirements from Taranaki Regional Council.

Chickens outdoors

Poultry

A maximum of 12 poultry are permitted to be kept in urban areas. The poultry must be adequately housed within a secure run and should not cause a nuisance to neighbours. No poultry house or run should be located within 10m of a dwelling or 2m from a boundary. Roosters may not be kept in urban areas.

Horse riding

Horses may be ridden in some areas, but riders need to be able to fully control their horses around people. In urban areas, horse owners are required to remove horse manure.

Riding horses

Removing bees and wasps

To remove unwanted bees or wasps on your property check the Yellow Pages for a registered beekeeper. Contact us to report bees and wasps on public property.

 

When to contact us

You should contact us in the following circumstances:

  • an animal is causing a problem. The types of problems that are considered an annoyance or nuisance include excessive noise, strong smells, dust or an accumulation of animal waste that attracts pests and/or insects. If the animal belongs to a neighbour, please discuss any concerns with them directly then contact us.
  • there is stock effluent on the road.
  • you are moving stock. You may also need to notify the Police and state highway contractor (MWH phone: 06 349 1139) if the stock will be on a state highway for any length of time.

How to contact us

You can contact us by phoning 06 759 6060 (24 hours a day 7 days a week) or through the online contact us form.

Contact us

Page last updated: 12:15PM Thu 27 April 2023

Contact us
06 759 6060 enquiries@npdc.govt.nz
Visit us

84 Liardet Street
New Plymouth

Search
Find by A–Z
Navigate
Useful links
Our NPDC family
New Zealand Government logo