Dog-fouling 'a huge problem across the county' as lack of responsibility is blamed
Register for free to read more of the latest local news. It's easy and will only take a moment.
Dog-fouling is "a huge problem across the county", Wick community councillors have been told.
The challenges involved in identifying inconsiderate owners were outlined by Highland Council's assistant community works officer Jodie Wilson, whose role includes the duties of dog warden for the Caithness area.
She said a lack of responsibility was a bigger factor than any shortage of poo bins.
Miss Wilson was invited to attend the March meeting of the Royal Burgh of Wick Community Council – held by Zoom on Monday night – in response to recent dog-fouling concerns. At the February meeting, chairperson Joanna Coghill had claimed Wick's pavements were "absolutely filthy" and declared: “There is not one street in this town that hasn’t got a lump of dog poo on it."
Mrs Coghill said at this week's meeting that the problem "seems to have increased tenfold" during the pandemic and she told Miss Wilson: “We wondered if there is anything we could do in conjunction with you to try and stamp this mess out.”
Fines of up to £80 can be imposed, although enforcement may be difficult.
“I can witness it on my own and issue a fine, but if a member of the public witnesses it they’ll need to have two people with them or if they’ve caught it on video or CCTV,” Miss Wilson explained.
“It’s a huge problem across the whole county, it’s not just Wick. It’s the villages, it’s Thurso, and sadly it’s just me that covers from here down to the Berriedale area and then out as far as Tongue the other way."
Miss Wilson's role also extends to litter enforcement officer, fly-tipping investigation and enforcement and investigation of reports of abandoned vehicles.
“I cannot be everywhere at once," she said. "A lot of people have obviously got dogs with lockdown and are going out more – perhaps people that weren’t walking as much previously.”
She highlighted recent efforts in the Staxigoe area to tackle dog-mess issues.
“In Staxigoe they’ve had some good progress with dispensers for poo bags made from plastic bottles, and they’ve put up extra signs. With our cutbacks we don’t issue free poo bags any more and we don’t issue out more dog bins," Miss Wilson said.
“If you’re not going to pick up, I don’t necessarily think it’s a lack of poo bins – it’s a lack of responsibility.
“I think in Staxigoe they’ve noticed a reduction by the fact that people are talking about it and making a point of saying it’s appalling – the state of the roads, the state of the pavements, the verges, the parks, everything. It’s just a case of people who think they can get away with it.”
Miss Wilson highlighted the community-led Green Dog Walkers Scheme which encourages dog walkers to wear an armband, or a collar for the dog, and which is seen as a non-confrontational way of getting the message across to other owners.
The email address for the Highland scheme is greendogwalkers@highland.gov.uk
Miss Wilson explained that the Dogs Trust animal welfare charity used to come up once or twice a year, prior to Covid, to run a responsible ownership roadshow offering free microchipping and health checks and to talk about issues such as dog-fouling and training as well as giving out free resources.
Community councillor Allan Bruce suggested organising a dog-fouling information campaign in Wick.
“I think there’s an opportunity here as a community council to help in having a blitz on advertising and signage about the town, just saying that this isn’t going to be accepted any longer," he said.
“There are no real excuses for not having bags as far as I’m concerned. It’s not the responsibility of the community council to tidy it up but I certainly think there is an opportunity there for us to influence the behaviour of the community and the ones that are not adhering to the rules.”
Community councillor Wendy Campbell pinpointed the Braehead, across from Smith Terrace, as a problem area.
She told Miss Wilson: “If you go up to the Braehead between half-past eight and half-past nine you’ll get your wages every week.”
Miss Wilson suggested getting schoolchildren involved to help raise awareness among parents: “Just to get them talking about it and then going home and telling mum and dad, ‘I learned about this, it’s disgusting – don’t forget your poo bags when you go out.’ And they are going to be the future dog owners in years to come.”
