To help alleviate this problem, Craven District Council has adopted the Dogs (Fouling of Land) Act 1996, which makes it an offence for a person in charge of a dog not to clean up its faeces after it has fouled in a public area.
If you are seen failing to clear up after your dog, you may be issued with a £50 fixed penalty. the offender will then have 14 days in which to pay the fine or face prosecution in Magistrate's Court, where a maximum fine of £1000 can be imposed.
An offence cannot be committed if:
- the person in charge of the dog is registered blind;
- the person who controls the land has consented to the faeces being left on the ground
- the person in control of the dog has a reasonable excuse
The law does not consider as a reasonable excuse:
- ignorance of the law
- forgetting to carry a bag
- lack of no fouling signs
Only one fixed penalty will be issued to each offender, anyone caught failing to clean up on a second occasions, will be prosecuted. If An authorised Officer is obstructed whilst issuing a Fixed Penalty, the offender will be prosecuted.
Dog Fouling is a nation-wide problem, which the Government is keen to address. As a result, since November 2003, Local Council's have been allowed to retain all monies collected from dog fouling fines.