Dog mess crackdown to continue in Doncaster

A Public Space Protection Order will continue to enforce rules on dog fouling and pets who cause alarm and distress.

Dogs will still be banned from being off their lead in places like cemeteries, fenced playgrounds and playing fields where sport is being played.

Walkers may be asked to produce poo bags on request and risk a fine if they can’t. Bosses behind the rules also say ‘being unaware of defecation’ shall ‘not be a reasonable excuse’ for failing to remove the mess.

Many residents backed the measure but urged the council to implement more dog bins in public places.

The order also gives powers to council and police officers to ask owners to put dogs on leads if they believe they are dangerous or causing a nuisance.

Coun Chris McGuinness, cabinet member for the environment, said: “This policy is overwhelmingly supported by the people who took part in the consultation.

“One of the interesting questions about this is before this was introduced back in 2016 or so, there were 1,432 complaints about dog fouling - and last year of the current PSPO complaints fell to 601.

“This shows this is something that is working.”

Coun Nigel Ball added: “There needs to be a massive culture change - you can see the numbers have decreased but any responsible dog owner should be picking up after them anyway.

“The council goes about its daily job and clears some of this away but it’s down to individuals. This is in the same way if people litter or fly-tip and we need to make sure we don’t allow people to indulge in anti-social behaviours.”

Mayor Jones said: “I fully support this because we need to show that we do care about our borough.

“It’s down to each individual to ensure they pick up after themselves because while we’re spending money on that, it leaves us far less money to spend on other essential services.”