“We’re watching you” warning to irresponsible dog walkers

An ‘edgy and uncompromising’ dog fouling campaign is being launched in the Shropshire Council area today (Monday 7 December 2015), aimed at dog walkers who don’t ‘scoop the poop’.

Shropshire Council has joined forces with environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy in a bid to reduce dog fouling in key problem areas throughout Shropshire.

The campaign sets its sights on irresponsible dog owners, with recent research showing that dog walkers are more responsible and pick up after their dogs when they think they are being watched.

Last year Keep Britain Tidy conducted a campaign pilot, funded by Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), working with land managers across the country. This pilot saw an average reduction of 46 per cent in the levels of dog fouling.

Feedback suggests that dog fouling tends to occur at night-time and during the months with shorter days, as some dog owners feel that they can’t be seen ‘under the cover of darkness’.

Now Shropshire Council has signed up to the ‘edgy and uncompromising’ campaign to tackle dog fouling hotspots.

The ‘We’re watching you’ series of signs are visible after dark, and use innovative cutting-edge materials.

The signs will be going up across Shropshire from Monday 7 December.

Tim Sneddon, environmental maintenance operations manager, said:

“Feedback from the public has told us the dog fouling is a key issue in many areas across the county, that they would like to see this addressed.

“We know that the public perceive dog fouling to be by far the most unacceptable and dirtiest type of litter.

“The vast majority of dog owners are responsible people, who habitually pick up after their dog and dispose of poo bags correctly, either in the nearest bin or by taking home to dispose of it in their own household waste bin.

“We are pleased to be working with Keep Britain Tidy and we hope that we will see the same results as the councils who have already signed up to the campaign.”

To report a problem with dog fouling and street cleansing please contact Shropshire Council on 0345 678 9006 or visit shropshire.gov.uk/report.

Pictured are (left to right):

Anne Breakwell, Technical Support Officer, Shropshire Council; Kate Adams, Street Scene Manager (south), Shropshire Council; Simon Harris, Mayor of Broseley; Esther Cartwright, Admin Assistant at Broseley Town Council