With the support of local communities, the enforcement team hope to make a real impact through raising awareness, emphasising responsible dog ownership and assisting in identifying those irresponsible dog walkers who fail to clean up after their dog!
The launch of “Dog Watch” coincides with the recent increase in Fixed Penalty fines, ensuring that any identified offenders will face a hefty £200 penalty (reduced to £150 if paid within 14 days).
What is ‘Dog Watch’?
Dog watch is an appeal to community groups and residents, encouraging active engagement with the Council enforcement team to help address dog fouling in our local area. If you believe your area is badly impacted by fouling, we urge you to get in touch. Over a two week period, the Council enforcement team will extensively patrol, survey the area, set up informative signage and engage with dog walkers with a view to educate and promote responsible dog ownership.
The goal is to establish long lasting partnerships between residents, community groups and officers on the ground. This collaboration will help us identify and address the root cause of fouling in the specified area. While the emphasis is on education and encouraging responsible dog ownership, enforcement action will be taken against anyone who fails to clean up after their dog.
.jpg.aspx?width=399&height=249 "Dog-Watch-(1).jpg")
How to get involved
From 1 September to 14 September we invite you to participate in a brief consultation to help identify the most suitable areas for this initiative. Using a combination of your input and insights from Council officers, several high priority areas will be selected to target Council’s efforts. If your area isn’t successful on the first round of selection, rest assured, Council plan on offering further opportunities in the months ahead.
Mayor of Antrim and Newtownabbey, Councillor Mark Cooper said
“Dog fouling is something that most communities feel strongly about, and we welcome the opportunity to tackle it together. While we appreciate that the majority of dog owners are responsible and pick up after their pets, dog fouling continues to be a high priority in certain hot spot areas.
“Our Enforcement team is really keen to work closely in partnership with community groups, neighbourhood watch groups and residents who wish to make a real improvement to the environmental quality of their area. With a focus on both education and enforcement, I believe that this campaign can have a great impact”.
If you are part of a residents group and believe your area would benefit from ‘Dog Watch’, reach out to the Council Enforcement team on T. 028 9034 0160 or E. envhealth@antrimandnewtownabbey.gov.uk to register your interest and an officer will be in touch with you soon!