Tamworth Regional Council receives increase in barking dog complaints as canines cause nuisance during lockdown

With more locals working from home during lockdown, Tamworth Regional Council has experienced a rising number of barking dog complaints.

In response, it launched a new awareness campaign called 'what is your dog doing now' on Tuesday.

Compliance manager Ross Briggs said the council has had 29 barking complaints in the 20 days of lockdown compared to 18 in the previous 20 days.

"People are trying to work from office spaces at home and all they can hear is the dog next door or the dog across the street barking and those calls are coming in," he said.

Council's rangers will be out and about over the next few weeks handing out information packs on how to deal with noisy hounds.

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But Mr Briggs said the first approach should always be a friendly chat with your neighbour.

"Generally for neighbour relations it's better if you have a talk to your neighbour first, they might not be aware, they might be not working at home and might not be aware that their dog is actually barking," he said.

"We've developed a letter template that will be on our website shortly that people can fill in and drop in their neighbour's mailbox."

As a last resort, locals can contact council. The fine is $275 for not complying with a nuisance dog order. The nuisance dog order is placed on the dog if the council thinks a problem exists after reviewing barking dog diaries.

The Companion Animals Act describes excessive barking as noise that "persistently occurs or continues to unreasonably interfere with the peace, comfort and convenience of any person in any other premises".

Mr Briggs said tips to reduce dog barking include taking your dog for walks, leaving toys for the dog to play with and restricting your dog's vision through the front fence.

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