Dog Fouling
The best way to clean up after your dog!
Estimates put the UK dog population between 6.5 and 7.4 million, producing 1000 tonnes of excrement per day. It is therefore not surprising that dog fouling is a major issue in many different areas around our District. The following information aims to outline the law and best practice in tackling the problem of dog fouling and to help members of the public to complain in the appropriate way.
What are the risks associated with dog fouling?
Dog faeces carry harmful infections, the most widely known being Toxocariasis. In humans toxocariasis is potentially a serious infection and is caught through contact of hands or objects such as wheels of toys and soles of shoes with soil or sand contaminated with faeces carrying eggs of the parasite.
The parasite can only infect humans if swallowed. Once swallowed the infection can last between 6 and 24 months. Many infected soil samples are found in children’s play areas and in the streets and as a result of this, toxocariasis is mainly found in children between 18 months and five years.
Eye disorders are the most commonly reported complaint associated with toxocariasis, although other symptoms are aches, dizziness, nausea, asthma and epileptic fits.
You can get more information on Toxocariasis from various websites including NHS Direct
How can these health risks be avoided?
Toxocara eggs are not infectious until they mature, which usually takes at least 2–3 weeks after they have been deposited by a dog. Dog faeces will only contaminate the soil when it has been left on the ground for this period of time, so if owners immediately clean up after their dog the threat of toxocariasis would be virtually eradicated.
What are the dog fouling laws?
The Dogs (Fouling of Land) Act 1996 allows the Council to designate any public land as poop scoop areas where dog owners must clean up after their pets. The land must be publicly accessible, although the following are not included:
- Carriageways with a speed limit of more than 40 mph
- Land used for agriculture or woodlands
- Land which is predominantly marshland, moor or heath
- Rural common land
Exceptions to the offence are:
- The person in charge of the dog had a reasonable excuse for not clearing up (being unaware of the fouling or not having the means to clean up is not an excuse)
- The owner or occupier of the land has consented to the faeces being left
- The person puts the faeces in a bin on the land
- The person in charge of the dog has a registered visual impairment
What action can the council take?
Under the Dogs (Fouling of Land) Act 1996 failure to clean up dog fouling is an offence subject to a maximum fine of £1,000. The Council can also give offenders the option of paying a fixed penalty fine of £50 rather than going to court.
How can you help?
If you see a dog owner who does not clean up after their dog and you want to stop this from happening again, then you should note the details of the offence as soon as possible. Details should include the name and address of the person in charge of the dog if known, a description of the dog, plus details of the date, time and place.
You should then contact our office at the address below to pass on this information. All information is dealt with in the strictest confidence and personal details will not be released to the offender. An Officer will contact you to discuss the matter further and will keep you informed of what action we intend to take.
One of the major roles of the Council's Environmental Health Division is to enforce legislation to protect the public, the environment and groups such as consumers and workers. One such area of enforcement relates to dog fouling.
At present this legislation only applies to limited areas of the District, with Byelaws applying to some parks and other public open spaces.
The Council wants to have a single system of enforcement for dog fouling and as such we are proposing to update the current Dog Fouling Designation of Land Order to apply the Dogs (Fouling of Land) Act 1996 to the whole of the District subject to the exemptions listed above.
Under the Act failure to clean up dog fouling is an offence subject to a fine of up to £1,000. The Council can also give offenders the option of paying a fixed penalty fine of £50 rather than going to court.
As part of the process of updating and amending the Order we recently invited comments from members of the public, Parish Councils and other organisations. Although this period of consultation has ended, and we are now in the process of bringing the new legislation into force, we would welcome any other comments on how we can attack the problem of dog fouling.
To report a dog fouling issue please visit our Dog Complaint Form.
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