Changes to the Animal Welfare Act in 2015 expanded on the ability to make regulations under the Act. A first set of regulations made under the new provisions came into force in August 2016. The next set came into force in October 2018, and more are planned.
As regulations come into force, we'll amend codes of welfare to align minimum standards with the regulations. Although we will include relevant regulations in the codes, there may be other regulations that are relevant to you. Check the full list of animal welfare regulations where appropriate.
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Owners or people in charge of animals must comply with the:
Animal Welfare Act 1999
minimum standards for animal care and management in codes of welfare.
The codes are separate from the Act because with so many different types of animals and situations, it is impractical to include them all in the Act – it would make for lengthy and unwieldy legislation.
Using the codes
More than one code of welfare might be relevant for a particular situation. For example, when transporting sheep, both the sheep and beef cattle code of welfare, and the transport within New Zealand code of welfare apply.
Codes of welfare also have recommended best practices. These recommendations set out standards of care and conduct, over and above the minimum required to meet the obligations in the Act. They are included to encourage higher standards of animal welfare.
Legally-speaking
If you are charged with an offence under the Act:
evidence of your failure to meet a relevant minimum standard in a code may be used to support the prosecution
your defence may include evidence that you equalled or exceeded the minimum standards in a relevant code.
The codes are flexible enough to be modified and improved as community expectations, good practice, scientific knowledge and technical advances allow. In the future, codes of welfare will be complemented by regulations to broaden enforcement powers.
Codes of welfare replace the 'Codes of recommendations and minimum standards', which were issued under the previous law. The only codes of recommendations and minimum standards that still apply are for deer velveting, and for ostriches and emus.
The National Animal Welfare Advisory Committee (NAWAC) acknowledges the official recognition of animal sentience within the Animal Welfare Act in 2015. Sentience is the ability to perceive or feel things. The understanding that animals are sentient has always been integral to NAWAC's development of the codes of welfare and the minimum standards contained within them. With sentience now formally recognised within the Act, NAWAC will continue to integrate the concept of animal sentience into future codes and standards as they are developed and reviewed.
The codes
Circuses
This code of welfare applies to anyone who owns or cares for animals used in circuses, including New Zealand-based circuses and visiting international circuses. There are specific minimum standards for some exotic species.
If a visiting circus brings an exotic animal not covered by this code to New Zealand, it needs to meet the provisions of the Animal Welfare Act and any requirements of the import health standard for that species.
If your circus has domestic animals, like dogs or horses, you must check the specific code of welfare for that species. You also need to ensure you comply with the requirements of other relevant codes of welfare, such as the code of welfare for the transport of animals in New Zealand.
The code of welfare for companion cats applies in all situations, including temporary housing such as shelters, or day boarding facilities, and catteries, and when in travelling exhibits or ‘petting zoos’.
This code applies to owners and people in charge of companion (pet) cats. It also gives advice on cats in colonies.
Anyone who owns or is in charge of dairy cattle needs to be aware of any relevant codes of welfare and comply with them and the general provisions of the Animal Welfare Act 1999. The code of welfare for dairy cattle covers:
dairy cows
calves born from dairy cows until weaning – wherever they are being reared
all dairy replacement stock – wherever they are being raised
calves sent for slaughter.
It also covers dairy cattle kept as house cows, and any bulls brought onto the farm for mating or kept at breeding centres. It does not cover dairy cattle, once weaned, that are raised for beef production.
Anyone who owns or is in charge of deer needs to be aware of any relevant codes of welfare and comply with the codes and the general provisions of the Animal Welfare Act 1999. This code applies to any deer held behind any boundary fence or other enclosure for the broadest purposes of farming, including the keeping of deer on game estates or safari parks. This code covers all aspects of deer production, except for velvet antler removal and castration of male deer – for these procedures refer to the Code of Welfare for Painful Husbandry Practices.
The code of welfare for dogs applies in all situations, including temporary housing such as shelters, doggy daycares or day boarding facilities, and kennels, and when in travelling exhibits or ‘petting zoos’.
This code of welfare applies to people who own or are in charge or dogs, including dog breeders and those who show dogs, keep dogs as pets, and use dogs for sport, or as working animals. People who own or are in charge of dogs need to be aware of the code and of the requirements in the Animal Welfare Act.
This code applies to all goats kept for any purpose, including feral goats after mustering, goats kept as pets, goats tethered anywhere, and goats on game estates or safari parks. Anyone who owns or is in charge of goats needs to be aware of any relevant codes of welfare and comply with the minimum standards in the codes and the general provisions of the Animal Welfare Act 1999.
This code applies to all horses and donkeys, including those kept as companions (pets), for breeding, for sport, entertainment or as working animals and any horse captured from the wild. Anyone who owns or is in charge of these animals needs to be aware of any relevant codes of welfare and comply with the minimum standards in the codes and the general provisions of the Animal Welfare Act 1999.
Anyone who owns or is in charge of layer hens, for commercial production or at home, needs to be aware of any relevant codes of welfare and comply with the codes and the general provisions of the Animal Welfare Act 1999.
As part of the amendments to the 2012 layer hens code of welfare, the Egg Producers Federation agreed to provide the Minister for Primary Industries with an annual report outlining progress towards phasing out conventional cages and transitioning to alternative layer hen farming sytems. The reports are available to download:
The llamas and alpacas code applies to all South American camelids kept for any purpose, including alpacas, llamas, guanacos, and crossbreds of these species. Anyone who owns or is in charge of these animals needs to be aware of any relevant codes of welfare and comply with the minimum standards in the codes and the general provisions of the Animal Welfare Act 1999.
Anyone who owns or is in charge of chickens being raised for commercial meat production needs be aware of any relevant codes of welfare and comply with the codes and the general provisions of the Animal Welfare Act 1999. The code of welfare for meat chickens covers all chickens raised for commercial production, whether they have access to the outdoors or are fully housed.
Anyone who owns or is responsible for ostriches or emus should know about and comply with minimum welfare standards. The standards covers general principles for the care and use of ostriches and emus. If the ostriches and emus are being held as exhibit animals, check your obligations under the zoo code of welfare.
A range of procedures like castration, disbudding, dehorning, and tail docking can cause pain to animals but need to be done:
for the animal's long-term welfare
to reduce the safety hazard to humans and other animals
to improve farm management or the quality of the animal product.
This code of welfare applies to everyone who intends to do any of these procedures. You also need to comply with the general provisions of the Animal Welfare Act 1999 and note, that several other species codes of welfare contain requirements for painful husbandry procedures.
The code of welfare for pigs applies to all pigs in all types of management systems, including pigs owned by non-commercial operators. Anyone who owns or is responsible for pigs needs to know about the code of welfare and comply with its minimum standards.
Minimum standard 6 sets the required minimum lying space for grower pigs using a formula. An online calculator is available to calculate the minimum space you need.
A National Animal Welfare Advisory Committee (NAWAC) completed a review of the use of farrowing crates on 14 March 2016. The committee considered if there needed to be an amendment to the Pigs Code of Welfare. It concluded a review of the code wasn't needed - there had been no recent significant change in science, technology or good practice.
This code of welfare applies to anyone responsible for the welfare of all animals being used in rodeos (although only cattle and horses may be used) and includes animals used in rodeo training, and animals used in rodeo schools. This includes New Zealand-based rodeos and visiting international rodeos.
In March 2018, the Government asked the National Animal Welfare Advisory Committee (NAWAC) for advice about rodeos. NAWAC began research, which included consulting with an expert panel.
NAWAC sent its report and advice letter to the Government in May 2018. It proposed a number of non-regulatory ways to improve animal welfare. One of them was to set up a rodeo animal welfare committee. Its job would be to promote continued improvements to the welfare of rodeo animals. The Government agreed to this non-regulatory approach.
The sheep and beef cattle code of welfare applies to all sheep and beef cattle which are farmed principally for their meat, fibre or offspring rather than their milk. This includes sheep and cattle of recognised dairy breeds, reared and farmed for meat production. Anyone who owns or is responsible for sheep or beef cattle needs to know about and comply with these minimum standards to ensure the welfare of the animals in their care.
The killing of animals must be done according to the Animal Welfare Act 1999. This Act makes it an offence to kill an animal in a way that causes unreasonable or unnecessary pain or distress. Each species code of welfare has requirements for emergency humane slaughter.
Commercial slaughter
Anyone involved in slaughtering animals, where a business transaction takes place, needs to meet the minimum standards of animal welfare in all relevant codes and the general provisions of the Animal Welfare Act.
This code applies to all companion animals in temporary housing facilities, including (but not limited to):
boarding establishments
animal welfare centres and pounds
quarantine/isolation facilities
pet shops.
Anyone who is in charge of companion animals in temporary housing facilities needs to be aware of any relevant codes of welfare. They must comply with the minimum standards in the codes and the general provisions of the Animal Welfare Act 1999.
Anyone who is organising or is responsible for animal transport needs to be aware of any relevant codes of welfare and comply with the codes and the general provisions of the Animal Welfare Act 1999.
This code applies to everyone transporting any live animal (land-based or aquatic) within New Zealand, whether over land, by air, or in New Zealand's territorial and inland waters (including to and from the Chatham Islands).
Anyone who is responsible for the welfare of animals (including wild animals held for rehabilitation) in zoos (including animal parks and aquariums) needs to be aware of any relevant codes of welfare and comply with the minimum standards in the codes and the general provisions of the Animal Welfare Act 1999.
