The Dog Poo Fairy doesn’t live in this village
– is the most humorous poster to be seen concerning the current outbreak of dog faeces left lying around the village. But, it’s not a funny situation, far from it. At best, it is unsightly and smelly and at worst it can contain and spread diseases, the two main groups of which, are parasitic infestations and bacterial or viral infections – and it also can leave you with very dirty shoes!
There is an Act of Parliament covering this situation, it is the “Dogs (Fouling of Land) Act 1966”. Kettering Borough Council has adopted and enforces this Act, which makes it ‘an offence for anyone in charge of a dog, to allow it to foul on any designated land within the Kettering Borough area, without removing the faeces.’ And that includes Geddington – whether it’s in the old bridge’s waiting areas or on the road to Clay Dick.
There are exceptions to this rule: blind people are exempt from cleaning up after their guide dog and also, anyone who finds their dog has fouled in any one of the following four areas:
1) Highways with a speed limit of over 50mph
2) Rural common land
3) Woodland and agricultural land
4) Marsh, moor and heath land
Parish Councillor John Padwick raised this issue in the Parish Council’s July meeting and many of you will have noticed that it is on this month’s Agenda, under the Environment & Recreation committee.
At the July meeting, it was confirmed that the Dog Warden had been asked to visit. At the same meeting, it was felt that some dog users weren’t sure of what to do with the mess after they had picked it up. It was confirmed that the tied doggy bag could be disposed of in any waste bin – whether it’s a dog bin waste (like the one at the top of Wood Street, at the start of Clay Dick) or KBC’s black bins that every household has and can use. There’s also a dog waste bin in the Dog Exercise Area in the Meadows – the ideal place for dogs and their exercise. So there is really no excuse for it to be left lying around the streets.
There are responsible dog owners in the village and many times have their actions been observed, but, as usual, it’s the irresponsible few that cause the most reaction.
To find out more on this subject – why not attend the next Parish Council meeting on Monday 14 October at 7.30pm in the Village Hall Lounge? There is a Public Session at the start of the meeting, at which the public are invited to raise any queries, ask any questions and generally make their views heard. There is no question of ‘Use it or Lose it’, but this is YOUR opportunity of having YOUR say – go for it!
If you would like to report dog fouling, you can do so by:
Telephone 01536 410333
Email customerservices@kettering.gov.uk or
Send a text message to 07824 451281.
NB Just to prove there is little new in this village, a quote by a former Chairman of the Parish Council, giving his quarterly report in the Newsletter,
“A regular item in the Chairman’s quarterly report is our appeal to dog owners who exercise their dogs in the recreation field. We are aware it only involves a very small minority of dog owners, but our sports teams have enough problems avoiding the professional fouls of their opponents, without having to avoid those of our canine community as well.”
Source: The Newsletter, Summer 1985
