Rethinking approaches to urban animal management: a review and integration of the strategies available
Virginia Jackson
Abstract
Traditionally we have relied on regulatory approaches to urban animal management. However, on its own, regulation
doesn't work. It needs to be supplemented by a range of non-regulatory approaches that emphasise voluntary and
passive compliance with the standards we set for responsible behaviour by pet owners. In the last decade a lot of
progress has been made in the use of non regulatory approaches to urban animal management. However
investigations have necessarily proceeded on a hit-and-miss basis due to the infancy of the field. A framework for
future policy development is now clearly needed.
The paper follows on from the author's introductory review of regulatory compliance at last year's conference. It
reviews the tools available for use in urban animal management with the aim of developing an overarching
framework within which future strategies can be developed, tested and ultimately judged.
Introduction
Urban animal management (UAM) in Australia is at a turning point. It has matured to a point where there are more
common understandings than there were 10 years ago. We now recognise the limits of regulation and are actively
developing complementary approaches. One of these, education, is almost universally held up as a panacea, and
rightly so, because if offers the most promise for lasting behavioural change. Yet for all its maturity there is still a
bewildering array of non-regulatory strategies, programs and services being trialed and implemented right across the
country. Forums like this help us to disseminate the results of this valuable work. However what is needed is a
framework to help us make sense of the confusion, identify gaps and ensure we target efforts in the most effective
way.
This paper is a first step towards the development of such a framework. I present the available tools, discuss their
potential in UAM and highlight lessons learned in comparable areas of urban policy. I don't evaluate any of the
programs individually. That is not my intention. Rather, my aim in building the framework is to help us make policy
choices on the basis of a more complete understanding of the full range of tools available. As a policy sector I think
we are ready for that now.
A distinguishing feature of my approach is to integrate the benefits of owning pets into the policy context. This
hasn't been done to date because the benefits have only really come to light in the last decade, well after the
regulatory and institutional frameworks were established. In practice this means pet ownership tends to be seen as a
'problem' that needs to be controlled rather than something worthwhile that needs to be 'managed'. Integrating the
benefits into UAM policy is a further reason to rethink our approach.
The first section of this paper examines the changing nature of UAM in Australia and why there is now so much
interest in alternative approaches. The second section looks at what we mean by compliance in UAM. The third
section looks at the range of strategies available and the final section discusses the findings of a limited case study of
the City of Stirling (W.A.).
About the author
Virginia Jackson B.Trp (Hons), MRAPI
Harlock Jackson Pty Ltd
Town Planners and Urban Policy Analysts
19 Victoria Grove
HAWTHORN EAST VIC 3123
Tel/Fax (03) 9882 6065
Virginia Jackson is a town planner and urban policy analyst with experience working in state and local government
and, since 1987, as a consultant to government, the private sector, community groups and individuals. She has been
conducting research in urban animal management for 5 years including a review of town planning policies and
regulations for their impact on pet ownership (1991), preparation of guidelines for pet friendly housing design
(1993) and a design and management guide for integrating dogs into public open space (1995). She has also made
preliminary investigations into the role that pets will play in cities of the future. Her current work on compliance
started with an introductory paper last year exploring the limitations of regulatory approaches in urban animal
management.
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