COMMENT: Time to wage war on lazy dog owners

YOU may not think it, but 92 percent of dog owners say that they pick up after their pets.

This was one of the findings of a survey revealed during ‘The Big Scoop’, a recent dog fouling awareness campaign by Dogs Trust.

Regular readers of this column will be familiar with my apparent fixation with this topic. Uncollected dog poo in public places is one of my pet hates (if you’ll excuse the pun!). I’ve been out and about a lot these days due to the spell of good weather and it seems to me that the problem of dog fouling is as bad as ever – if not worse.

A Behaviour and Attitudes survey found that seven in 10 people claimed to have walked in dog poo on the street: 60 percent in a park; 44 percent walked it into the house; 43 percent in the local children’s park; 24 percent rolled a buggy through it; 20 percent rolled a bicycle through it; and 10 percent rolled their wheelchair through it.

The Dogs Trust charity correctly points out that, aside from the yuck-factor of stepping in dog poo, there can be major health implications associated with it. It can contain nasty bacteria such as E.coli and parasites like roundworm, the larvae of which can cause loss of vision. It can also spread illness and disease to other dogs and wildlife.

Worryingly, it has been estimated that a single gram of dog waste can contain 23 million faecal coliform bacteria, which are known to cause cramps, diarrhoea, intestinal illness and serious kidney disorders in humans.

It appears that local authorities are failing to make an impact on irresponsible dog owners. The provision of CCTV cameras along popular walking routes would possibly act as a deterrent. But what is really needed is a zero-tolerance clampdown on dog owners who are too lazy or ignorant to bring a bag or ‘pooper scooper’ with them.

I’m talking increased on-the-spot fines and a more visible presence of dog wardens in our local communities. We are quick enough to move our cars when we see a traffic warden checking windscreens or the clampers doing the rounds. But there’s no similar fear factor for owners when it comes to dog fouling because they know there’s a very slim chance they’ll be caught.

It’s time we waged war on them, once and for all.