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Search forStray dog owners across Chase will be fined
Thursday, November 13, 2008, 00:00
Cannock Chase Council said a change in the way strays were collected had come into force and the responsibility had been passed from Staffordshire Police to council officers.
But at October's cabinet meeting, council members were told that government funding was not sufficient to offer an out-of-hours service.
And now dogs found stray after 4pm on week days, weekends or bank holidays, will be left to roam.
"Dangerous dogs, however, should still, in the first instance, be reported to the police both during the day and out-of-hours," a council spokesman said.
Councillors also decided to introduce fixed penalty notices for owners who allow their dogs to stray and to 'recover the costs in dealing with strays from owners'.
Councillor Tony Williams, the council's environment leader, said: "The council will continue to collect stray dogs reported before 4pm wherever possible, but we urge all owners to take particular care to ensure their dogs do not stray.
"Anyone seeing a dog running loose should approach with care to see if the dog is wearing a collar and tag. If it is not, we advise people not to approach it."
He added: "We also advise people not to take in a stray dog unless they can keep it overnight, as we will be unable to collect it until the next working day."
He urged dog owners to get their pets microchipped to help with the identity and return of their pet.
"The council cannot continue paying for irresponsible dog owners," Cllr Williams added.
"We need to ensure all owners are encouraged to behave responsibly and we hope these measures will lead to a significant reduction in the number of strays reported."
Responsibility for the collection of stray dogs has passed from the police to the district council. (PB10563-9152CM)
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