Clean Up After Your Dog - Wherever You Are

A new dog fouling order that comes into force on 1 January will make it an offence not to clean up after your dog in any public area in North Norfolk.

The new rules, brought in under the Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005, simplify the existing provisions that have applied in the District.

Anyone who allows their dog to foul, and who does not clean it up, in public areas - or on private land that is open to the public - will be subject to an £80 fixed penalty notice (£60 if paid within 10 days). If they refuse to pay the fixed penalty, action in the magistrates' courts could result in a fine of up to £1000 on conviction.

Until now, dog fouling has been prohibited by the Dogs Fouling of Land Act 1996 which covered parts of the District covered by 40mph speed limits, as a way of preventing fouling within populated areas. The new order does away with that confusion and applies across the whole District, so it includes out-of-the-way beauty spots that are popular with people and families as well as those walking their dogs.

There are exemptions and exceptions. Any land owned by the Forestry Commission (like Bacton Wood) is outside the scope of the order, and if the land is privately-owned, NNDC will only take action for dog fouling if the landowner approves.

Popular dog-walking spots largely have red bins provided for throwing away dog mess. If there are no bins, dog owners should collect their pets' mess in a bag and dispose of it at home, by double wrapping the mess and placing it in a domestic waste bin.

The new order has been subject to public consultation this autumn, and people's views were considered by the Council's Animal Control Working Group earlier this month.

ENDS