Animal Welfare
Malvern Hills District Council’s Animal welfare / Dog
warden is a high profile service, providing not only the control of
stray dogs, but also many other aspects regarding animal welfare.
The responsibilities of this service are wide-ranging and are
described in more detail below.
What do we do?
Our responsibilities cover
many aspects of animal welfare and the control of dogs. Animal
Welfare Officer will get involved with:
- Controlling stray dogs, under the Environmental Protection Act
1990.
- Dealing with dangerous or aggressive dogs, as defined by the
Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 and Dogs Act 1871.
- Issuing fixed penalty notices for dog fouling, as specified by
Dogs (Fouling of Land) Act 1996.
- Erecting 'No Dog Fouling' notices.
- Investigating dog fouling in gardens of domestic properties
that is causing a nuisance by smell or flies under the
Environmental Protection Act 1990.
- Micro chipping dogs to provide a better way of identifying
them.
- The issuing of animal related licenses for pet shops,
zoos, boarding, breeding and
riding establishments, and for dangerous
wild animals. For a licence for Performing Animals please
contact Worcestershire Hub 01905 765765 or e-mail animaltss@worcestershire.gov.uk
Dangerous dogs
All dog
owners must keep their dog under control at all times.
A dog that shows aggression to a member of the public may be
considered dangerous even if the animal has not bitten anyone. If a
person has reasonable belief that the dog will bite, court action
may be taken against the owner under the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991.
When a dog is 'dangerously out of control in a public place' but it
has not injured anyone the penalty is up to six months in prison or
a fine, or both. If a dog has injured someone the penalty is
increased, to a maximum of two years in prison or an unlimited
fine.
We would strongly recommend that dog owners ensure their gardens
are secure, so that dogs are unable to roam freely and cause any
member of the public to feel threatened.
Dog fouling in
domestic gardens
An accumulation of dog foul in a
rear yard or garden can cause an unwelcome nuisance to neighbours
due to the smell and flies it creates.
If an Animal Welfare Officer witnesses this nuisance a Statutory
Nuisance Notice can be served on the Owner or occupier of the
property, this will order them to clean up the dog foul within a
certain amount of time - usually within seven days although this
can be sooner depending on the severity of the problem.
The Statutory Nuisance is on-going which means once it is served
no further warnings are necessary before further action is taken by
the District Council. Failure to comply with the notice and keep
the garden clean could lead to court action resulting in a fine up
to £5000.
Micro chipping of
dogs
Collars and tags can go missing, leaving a dog
with no means of identification, but micro chipping can help. A
microchip is 14mm in length (the size of a grain of rice), it is
quick, simple and painless to implant into the scruff of the dogs
neck. It has a unique number code, which can be read by scanners
held nationwide by all major animal charities, vets, police holding
kennels and Animal Welfare Officers. This code is stored on a
national database that holds all sorts of information including the
owners name and contact details, dogs name, age, colour and even
favourite food.
Cruelty to animals - who should you call?
If you suspect that an animal of any kind is being subjected to any
form of cruelty, please speak with our Animal Welfare Officer. The
only other organisation that can legally deal with this is the
Royal Society for the Prevention of
Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA). To contact the National Cruelty
Helpline call: 0870 5555 999.
Contact details
If you would like to know
more about these issues, or more broadly about animal welfare
please contact the Animal Welfare Officer.