Dogs will not be banned from sports pitches across Caerphilly County Borough after the council received opposition to the plans during a public consultation into dog controls.
Caerphilly County Borough Council has published a series of proposals to introduce a Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPO) relating to dog control in the borough, including excluding dogs from children’s play areas and requiring walkers to carry bags to pick up their pet’s mess.
PSPOs help deal with nuisances or problems in a defined area which are detrimental to a local community’s quality of life. They can provide councils and police with additional powers to tackle anti-social behaviour by restricting the use of an area.
In April 2016, residents were invited to have their say on initial dog control measures after the council’s 2015 Household Survey showed that 40% of respondents were concerned over dog fouling.
Proposals were made formal last month and following a consultation, could go before the local authority as soon as its next cabinet meeting in September.
Other proposals include requiring dogs to be kept on leads in memorial gardens, ensuring that out-of-control dogs are put on a lead when directed by an authorised officer, and requiring owners to pick up dog faeces on any public land.
Cabinet Member for Environment and Public Protection, Cllr Eluned Stenner, said: “We know that dog fouling remains a key issue for our residents, and we’re confident that the implementation of a Public Spaces Protection Order would give us and our partners additional powers to tackle this issue.”
Initial plans also suggested banning dogs from sports pitches, but the proposal has been revised in a move welcomed by the animal charity, RSPCA Cymru.
Paul Smith, RSPCA Cymru Public Affairs Manager, said: “It’s so important local authorities use their powers to help responsible pet owners to live harmoniously within the community.
“We were concerned that proposals in Caerphilly to ban dogs from marked sports pitches would have a negative impact on dog welfare, by restricting many accessible locations for them to exercise.
“Responsible dog owners must have opportunities to walk their dogs all year round, in appropriate, accessible spaces. It’s very positive news for dog welfare in Caerphilly that a ban on marked sports pitches is not being introduced.
“RSPCA Cymru is proud to work closely with each of Wales’ 22 Local Authorities, and we’d urge other councils to look closely at this situation in Caerphilly and adopt a similar approach with any PSPOs they bring forward.”
Dogs should not be allowed in play areas or recreation grounds. No matter how good dog owners are, we still have irresponsible dog owners who leave dogs mess on the ground. I cant understand why the council wont ban them surely it makes sense, on health grounds. The problem is we dont have any group with in the council to police this. I reported an issue with a dog owner leaving mess outside my house but was told thy dont have anyonr working before 9am to help with this issue. I sometimes wonder why we pay so much for our council tax
Dogs should not be allowed on any playing /sports field, due to the health hazards dog poo can contain.
Yet another case of the council not having the bottle to implement legislation properly for fear of upsetting a few people.
As a local authority you have a duty to protect residents – not fully implementing this legislation is a disgrace.
Well what a joy good on Caerphilly council it’s about time this country is turning into a country of dog haters.
Most dog owners do pick up after the dog but the fines seem to be working let’s look at the motor bikes driving at high speed in green places even on walking tracks children playing walking that’s far more important then a dog.