Dog owner first to be fined in new crackdown

THE council's crackdown on dog fouling has netted its first result after a man was ordered to pay £575 by magistrates.

Michael Carr, of Hillmorton Road, had pleaded guilty at Nuneaton Magistrates' Court on Tuesday to three offences.

The 72-year-old was not in court so was fined £250 in his absence and ordered Mr Carr to pay £300 costs and a £25 victim surcharge.

The court heard Carr was asked at the GEC Recreation Ground by a council officer at around 8.30am on Friday October 18 to clear up after his dogs or risk receiving a fixed penalty notice.

But Carr ignored the officer's request, left the recreation ground and was watched as he returned to home.

Later that day Carr and his dogs were spotted again on the rec by a member of the public who watched as he collected mud from a nearby hedge and covering faeces. When the other dog fouled, Carr covered it with twigs before stamping the twigs into the ground.

Photographs were sent to the council which decided to take him to court after he ignored the fines he was ordered to pay.

The prosecution followed the launch of a council poster campaign to crackdown on dog fouling, and a new mobile app which allows residents to report dog fouling online from a tablet or mobile phone.

The council receives more than 300 reports of dog fouling a year from residents.

Under the borough's dog control orders, dog owners who fail to clean up fouling face an £80 fixed penalty notice. Failure to pay the notice could result in prosecution, with a maximum fine of £1,000.

Council environment spokesman Dr Mark Williams said: "There's really no excuse for failing to clean up after your dog and this prosecution illustrates the council's determination to crackdown on the minority of dog owners who flout the law and damage our environment."

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