Animal welfare codes with no status under the Act

Animal welfare and other industry codes that are neither 'compulsory' nor 'voluntary' under the Queensland Animal Care and Protection Act 2001 have no legal status under the Act in Queensland.

This doesn't mean they do not contain good information about animal welfare, especially if they already have legal status under animal welfare legislation in another Australian state or territory, or in New Zealand. Such codes may be assessed for their suitability for use in Queensland.

In addition to interstate codes, animal welfare codes may be produced by particular animal user groups, commercial organisations or by individuals. If there is no recognised legal code for your animal use situation, you may decide to follow one of these codes to help you meet your duty of care.

If you do this, it is your responsibility to ensure that the information in the code is prepared by a credible and reliable source, up to date, and relevant to Queensland conditions and your particular situation.