Impounded animals
Learn what happens if your lost pet or livestock is impounded. Check the fees and conditions for collecting your lost animal.
What is an impounded animal?
An impounded animal is an animal we take to an animal rehoming centre. It may be a lost pet or livestock that we find or one surrendered by its owner. We care for these animals until we can reunite them with their owners, if they can be identified, or find them new homes through adoption.
What is an animal rehoming centre?
An animal rehoming centre provides care, shelter and rehoming services for animals that are lost or without a home in Brisbane.
We have 2 animal rehoming centres run by staff from Animal Welfare League Queensland (AWLQ).
Staff at our animal rehoming centres make every effort to identify the owners of lost animals and reunite them with one another, and rehome any unclaimed animals that are healthy and sociable.
Animal rehoming centre locations
Warra Animal Rehoming Centre
523 Telegraph Road, Bracken Ridge Qld 4017 07 3631 6800Monday to Friday: 12 noon–6pm
Saturday to Sunday: 10am–3pm
Public holidays: Closed
Willawong Animal Rehoming Centre
340 Gooderham Road, Willawong Qld 4110 07 3714 2800Monday to Friday: 12 noon–6pm
Saturday to Sunday: 10am–3pm
Public holidays: Closed
Note: The entrance to the Willawong Animal Rehoming Centre is located on Camden Road, Willawong (opposite 45 Camden Road).
If your pet or livestock has been impounded
Staff at the animal rehoming centre will try to contact you and organise collection if they can identify you as the animal's owner.
Claiming your pet or livestock from an animal rehoming centre
How long your pet or livestock stays in our animal rehoming centre depends on a number of things, including its species and registration status.
- We hold a cat or dog for 5 days if it’s registered in Brisbane or another local government area, or if it has a microchip.
- We hold a cat or dog for 3 days if it isn’t registered in Brisbane or another local government area, or it doesn’t have a microchip.
- We hold livestock for up to 10 days.
Before you can take your animal home, check the fees and conditions you need to meet.
Your animal must:
- not have been impounded for wandering in public more than 3 times in the past 12 months
- not be declared dangerous or menacing.
When you collect your pet, you must:
- provide identification (e.g. driver's licence)
- pay required fees, including fees to cover the time your animal has spent in the animal rehoming centre
- register your dog (if you haven’t already)
- microchip your cat or dog (if it doesn't already have one)
- be aware you may get a fine if the animal broke any state or Council laws.
Animal rehoming centre release fees
You need to pay a fee to collect your animal from one of our animal rehoming centres.
| Animal/service | Fee |
|---|---|
| Dogs | |
| Microchipped or wearing an ID tag (released on the first day) | $42.30 |
| Not microchipped or wearing ID tags (released on the first day) | $63.15 |
| Fee for every subsequent day | $28.10 |
| Seized or declared dangerous dogs | |
| Released on the first day | $119.90 |
| Fee for every subsequent day | $34.40 |
| Cats | |
| Microchipped or wearing an ID tag (released on the first day) | $32.20 |
| Not microchipped or wearing ID tags (released on the first day) | $48.90 |
| Fee for every subsequent day | $16.10 |
Release fees for other animals
You can contact the relevant animal rehoming centre for release fee information for impounded animals, other than dogs and cats.
Animal rehoming centre microchipping fees
Before taking your animal home, you need to have it microchipped if it doesn’t already have one.
| Animal | Fee |
|---|---|
| Dog | $46.35 |
| Cat | $46.35 |
Frequently asked questions
Council can identify the owner of a animal through dog registration, a microchip or collar.
If you find a lost animal, report it to Council.
Contact Council to report a missing animal.
If your lost animal doesn’t have a microchip, collar or registration number, and you’re worried we won’t be able to identify you as the owner, report the lost animal to Council as soon as possible.
If your animal is at one of our animal rehoming centres, we'll make every effort to reunite you with your lost pet.
If you find a dead animal, you can ask Council to collect it. We check animals for a registration tag or microchip when we retrieve them from a road or footpath. If the animal has a registration tag or microchip, we'll try to contact the owner.