Who is impacted?
Everyday Queenslanders are at risk under outdated dog laws. Families, kids, pet owners, and even bystanders can be attacked  whether by accident or deliberately set upon by a dog.

YOU ARE NOT PROTECTED UNDER QUEENSLAND LAW.
THE OWNER IS NOT TRULLY HELD ACCOUNTABLE
POLICE ARE ALSO UNLIKELY TO ATTEND UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES WHEN IT COMES TO DOG ATTACKS UNDER THE CURRENT LAWS. 

This is for the love of dogs, the accountability of irresponsible dog owners and protection for the whole community.
In this state, the owner is not automatically liable. That means if you or your loved ones are attacked, you’re left fighting uphill to recover costs or see the owner held accountable.

On 7 September 2025, my dog Wilfred and I were attacked in Ellen Grove after a resident stirred up and released their dog on us.

Wilfred needed emergency surgery for serious injuries. I was also bitten and spent the night in hospital. Instead of helping, the residents stood over me, threatened me, and abused me while I was bleeding on the roadside. When I rang 000 and asked for Police, they refused to come  saying it was a “grey area” under the law.

You can find out more about my story on Facebook and follow along: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/19iJikdfQH/

What is at stake?
Any other state in Australia, this would have been treated as a criminal case. In New South Wales, Victoria, and South Australia, the law is clear: if a dog attacks, the owner is held responsible straight away. Police act, and charges can follow. In Queensland, that doesn’t happen. The law is full of holes. Unless you can prove the owner gave a “verbal command,” cases like mine are brushed off as just a “dog matter” that might lead to restrictions at best.

We could have been killed in this attack. My dog was cut open and stitched back together. I ended up in hospital. Yet accountability still doesn’t land under Queensland law. Owners can stir up and release a dog, walk away, and leave victims to fight uphill. Responsible owners are already doing the right thing. It’s the reckless and aggressive ones that slip through and face no real consequences.

This could be your children, your pets, and the most vulnerable in our communities at risk. Under today’s laws, owners can walk free from responsibility for injury  or even death.

Why now?
This is the opportunity for the Queensland Government to take urgent and emergency action, creating a hybrid reform based on the proven success of laws in other states. The harshest and most effective measures must be adopted, to ensure the changes are not only strong but fast in execution. Councils, vets, the RSPCA, and even Police already know Queensland’s laws are behind. The government must now step up.

What we demand
1.    Recognise all deliberate or negligent dog attacks as criminal assault with a weapon without the loophole of requiring a “verbal command.”
2.    That reform applies retroactively for at least the past five years, so past victims can also see justice.
3.    That Police must attend whenever a victim reports being assaulted by a dog, threatened, or intimidated  no excuses.
4.    That deliberate dog release causing injury triggers a mandatory criminal investigation, not just council action.
5.    Hold owners fully liable for injuries, trauma, property damage, or death caused by their dogs.
6.    That the Queensland Government adopts the strongest and most effective provisions from other states immediately, not watered-down measures that drag on for years.

Final word
This is not an election promise  it is an urgent and immediate need. Every day without change risks another attack, another hospitalisation, another family left without justice.

Queenslanders deserve the same protection as every other Australian. If this had happened in NSW, VIC, or SA, it would already be a criminal matter. It’s time Queensland caught up.

Sign this petition and I’ll be your voice. Together we can push for laws that make accountability clear, protect the community, and deliver justice that’s long overdue.