Frequently Asked Questions
If you have a question that has not been covered here, please contact us. Frequently asked questions and the answers will be added to this section of the website.
FAQ's for the Australian Cat Action Plan can be found here.
How do G2Z and No Kill differ?
Getting to Zero and the No Kill Equation include similar strategies and both aim to save all healthy and treatable animals in a community, a 90% save rate or more.
Follow this link to find out more why getting to zero.
Is there help available to help us on the road to G2Z?
Yes! There are many resources on this website that will assist you in your goal to get to zero euthanasia of healthy and treatable pets. We also encourage you to contact us.
Which organisations are already on the road to zero?
Our Directory page has a listing of those organisations that have notified us of their journey on the road to G2Z. There may be more, we would love to hear from them!
If you know of someone or an organisation taken on board the G2Z principles please encourage them to contact us.
How do we start the conversation with our local pound or shelter?
We recommend that you make an appointment to meet with the responsible person (CEO, Manager, Local Laws Coordinator or other) at your local pound and shelter to open discussions. Don’t assume that you have a clear understanding of the organisation's policies and outcomes. Civil debate, dialogue and open collaboration are critical to building humane communities and to getting to zero euthanasia of healthy and treatable pets. Ask what the challenges are that the particular facility faces and consider how you may be able to assist with these challenges, they may not be what you think. Here is a link to a page on the HSUS website about coalition building which may be of assistance. http://animalsheltering.org/resources/all-topics/coalition-building.html
Is compulsory desexing necessary?
Compulsory desexing legislation is really about responsible breeding. It is one of the strategies that can help local government officers reinforce the need for desexing. We recommend responsible breeding legislation as being most proactive i.e. breeder permits which require inspections and compliance with standards of care, including desexing kittens prior to sale or transfer unless being sold to another permitted breeder. This is setting the standard for the right thing to do, while there is an oversupply of cats and kittens needing homes, with many not getting one. There is no evidence of any short or long term problems with desexing cats from 8-10 weeks before they are sold by the breeder. If the kitten is sick, of course, a clause in the legislation can give the breeder the right to rehome the kitten with a
veterinary letter explaining its health problems which would put the kitten at risk if desexed.
People who do accidentally breed without a permit should be given every opportunity to comply. They can be given a Council notice to either get a breeder permit, or desex their breeding cat(s) and kittens. They should be given time e.g. 30 days, and support e.g. availability of a desexing subsidy, and the opportunity of free desexing of their mother cat if they want to keep her, and surrender the kittens to a pound, shelter or rescue group who will desex and rehome them. This prevents kittens being given out free to neighbours and friends who may also not get around to desexing before 4 months of age, and so the cycle begins again of more unwanted litters. People sometimes think they have done the right thing by breeding lovely kittens and giving them away without knowing the big picture of how many there are needing homes in local pounds and shelters, or hiding in local factories, hospitals, tips and beaches.
Desexing legislation needs to go hand in hand with plenty of publicity of the good reasons for it, and of course encouragement and support to achieve compliance. This can be done by Councils' funding ongoing desexing programs, working with local veterinarians and animal welfare groups to share the cost reduction and provide
incentive for people to desex their cats and dogs. Joining in National Desexing Month each year can be a great opportunity to promote special desexing offers as well.
It is understood that legislation, on its own, will not fix the various problems facing animal welfare and management. What it will do is give those on the front line a means of reducing the numbers of pets in the community left to breed indiscriminately, when necessary. For further discussion on this matter go to our legislation
page.
What assurance do I have that the organisations featured on this website are working towards G2Z?
All participating G2Z organisations are required to read and agree to the G2Z Participant Code of Ethics.
Can I help G2Z?
Yes you can! Any funding G2Z receives will be used to provide more communities with assistance and necessary infrastructure e.g. community vet clinics, rehoming centres and education facilities. Contact info@g2z.org.au for further information