The Epping Animal Welfare Facility could soon be known by a different name.
Whittlesea council is proposing to rename the Companion Place facility after bringing management of the facility in-house in partnership with Merri-bek and Darebin councils last month.
The facility was operated by RSPCA Victoria for nearly five years, but Whittlesea council chief executive Craig Lloyd said the decision was made to manage the EAWF in-house “to achieve the best possible outcomes for the animals”.
During council’s October 17 meeting, the administrators decided to consult with the community about a new name for the facility.
It is proposed that it be renamed ‘wat djerring Animal Facility’.
Council made an application to the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Cultural Heritage Aboriginal Corporation earlier this year seeking suggested Aboriginal names for the facility.
The name to corporation offered was ‘wat djerring’, meaning “we together”.
The name is pronounced “wot jerring”.
In a statement, council said it is proposed that the facility is relaunched with a new name to move away from being suburb-specific and reflect that the facility services a much broader region.
“The meaning of wat djerring – “we together” – reflects that the three councils are working to deliver positive animal welfare outcomes for our communities and the main goal of the service which is to bring people and their pets back together,” council’s stated.
Residents can have their say on the proposed name until 5pm on Sunday, November 20 by emailing vivic.administration@whittlesea.vic.gov.au or writing to Governance Team, City of Whittlesea Locked Bag 1, Bundoora MDC 3083.
