Governing Pets and Their Humans: Dogs and Companion Animals in NSW, 1966-98

Over approximately the last century, the major pieces of legislation that govern pets and their humans in New South Wales have been the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1979, the Crimes Act 1900 (NSW), the Dog and Goat Act 1898, the Dog Act 1966 and the Companion Animal Act 1998. Using a governmentality-based methodology, this article reveals that the changes in the regulation of dogs from the Dog Act 1966 to the Companion Animal Act 1998 show a shift from controlling dogs to governing dog owners.