VOTE: Dog walkers urged to clear up mess at open spaces

Bracklesham resident Chris Bardwell, 62, said he had confronted a dog owner with five dogs in tow, after she let one of them foul on the grass right next to where cars park at the Trundle, and where people, including young children, tread when getting out of vehicles.

“I did hoot my horn at her and pointed at her dog, when this didn’t work I then shouted at her across the car park to ask her if she would like my spare poo bag, this was ignored as well,” said Mr Bardwell, who has also confronted dog owners at West Wittering beach.

He said during his walk on October 24 he counted 20 separate fresh piles of dog mess on the field side of the footpath leading to the top of the hill and said he was fed up with the problem.

“I just cannot understand these people. I challenged a lady at West Wittering, and said would she like a bag to pick up her dog’s mess and she just said ‘should I?’. Needless to say, when I pointed out there was a fine if she did not, she did so.”

Mr Bardwell, who said he and his wife were scrupulous about cleaning up after their own dog, said there was no red dog bin at the site and he thought more people would be encouraged to clean up if there were a dedicated dog bin.

“I think it’s often older owners who are the worst at clearing up, maybe because they were not brought up to do it. It’s about trying to train a few people,” he said. “I often see bags of mess hung up on the fence, but that’s not really clearing up properly.”

Chichester District Council’s dog warden department said owners were expected to clean up immediately if their dog fouled on any land which is open to the air and where the public are entitled or permitted to have access.

The council said failing to clean up after a dog was an offence, and owners could be issued with £50 fixed penalty notices, which could lead to a maximum fine of £1,000 if not paid.

It added that bags of mess hung on branches and fences were not considered to be clearing up and this was treated as an offence which could result in formal action.