Warning to Dog Owners

Dog owners from Tain to Alness are being warned they could be £40 out of pocket sometime in the next month if they don’t pick up after their pets.

Highland Council Enforcement Officers will be targetting problem areas including Tain, Portmahomack, Invergordon and Alness where communities have reported that dog fouling is a real nuisance.  Anyone seen not picking up their dog’s mess immediately after it has fouled will be issued with a £40 fixed penalty on the spot.

The Council provides free bags at local Service Points and other locations so dog owners can dispose of the bag and its contents in their own bin at home, in dog fouling bins that are situated along most dog walking routes or in those Council bins labelled with new the new ‘dog waste – bin it here signs’.

The Enforcement Officers can also issue Fifty Pound fines for littering offences and will be watching out for people dropping litter too.

Councillor Rhind encouraged people to act responsibly to keep the Highlands looking naturally beautiful.

 
“Some people don’t seem to realise the consequences that both litter and dog mess has on the enviroment and to the health and wellbeing of their community. So now if they are caught offending it will cost them,” he said.

The Dog Fouling (Scotland) Act 2003 is the key legislation which empowers the Council to issue Fixed Penalty Notices.  Anyone identified as failing to clean up after their dog is liable to receive a fixed penalty of £40, which rises to £60 if not paid within 28 days.

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