TWO councillors have teamed up with a council dog warden in a bid to crackdown on dog fouling in Wyndham. 

Wyndham ward councillors Gill Slocombe and Cllr Rachael Lilley received a number of complaints from dog owners in the area who said they feel angry other dog owners leave their pet's mess on the ground. 

The pair are working with Sedgemoor dog warden Tina Kick to crack down on the issue and are chalk stencilling area where dog mess is found to remind dog owners to carry dog bags with them. 

Councillor Gill Slocombe, said: "It must be stressed that there is only a small minority of dog owners that fail to pick up the dog fouling, nearly all are really good responsible dog owners.  

"Most of the complaints we get are from dog owners who feel very angry that some other dog owners act in this irresponsible way. 

"Children going to school have to dodge the dog fouling and it must stop. Parents are really fed-up with this, so we thought it is important that people know exactly what they can do about it. "

Cllr Slocombe said Sedgemoor dog wardens patrol public open spaces including residential areas, parks, children's play areas and beaches for dog fouling.

If the council receives complaint about dog fouling on public land and officers will visit the area and put up signs advising dog owners to pick up their mess or they can be fined. 

If the signs have no affect the council will patrol and monitor the area for dog owners who are not cleaning up after their dogs.

Councillor Slocombe added: "The dog wardens are authorised, and have powers to take enforcement action against dog owners/person(s) in charge of the dog, that fail to remove their dog faeces from public land.

"Non-removal of dog faeces from public land is an offence waste forthwith.  

"The dog wardens may also with sufficient evidence, take enforcement action if a member of public has witnessed the offence, but they must be willing to make a full witness statement with details of what they had witnessed.

"This would include where the offence had taken place, what time of day/night, the distance from dog/owner, breed of dog, was the owner male or female, taking as much detail as possible.

"They must be sure that the dog had actually fouled."

Councillor Slocombe said if residents do witness a dog owner not picking up after their dog they should report it to the dog warden.

Non-removal of dog faeces from public land is a punishable offence, with a fine of up to £1000. If the dog warden witnesses an offence, the dog owner/person in charge of dog, will be asked for their name, address and various other details under caution, this person would then be issued a Fixed Penalty Notice for the offence committed.

If this person fails to pay the notice within 14 days, they may be summoned to the courts and prosecuted for the offence. 

For more information about dog fouling visit www.sedgemoor.gov.uk