unwanted dog litter on my lawn Help

Ambersky

I thought the idea that it was ok and only natural to simply open your door and let your dog out to roam where it wanted was gone but apparently not.
It may be natural for all kinds of animals to roam freely but pet care and the responsible ownership of dogs has changed somewhat since many of us now live in areas not surrounded by fields and have to share space with other humans in citys and towns. There are all kinds of reasons for the laws that state that a person must have their dog on a lead or be in control of the animal responsible for whatever it gets up to.

Under the Control of Dogs Act 1986, as amended by the Control of Dogs (Amendment) Act 1992, local authorities are responsible for the control of dogs. They have the power to appoint dog wardens, provide dog shelters, seize dogs, impose on-the-spot fines and take court proceedings against owners. .......

Stray dogs

Stray dogs are dogs that are in a public place and are not accompanied by the owner or a responsible person. Dogs that are not under proper control are also considered stray dogs. You can receive an on-the-spot fine if your dog is not under proper control. Stray dogs may be seized by the dog warden and the Gardaí and brought to a dog pound. These dogs may be put down or disposed of if their owners do not claim them within 5 days. If your dog has strayed or is missing, you should contact the local dog pound directly to check if your dog is there. Before you collect it, you will have to pay a re-claim fee and produce a current dog licence. If you do not have a current dog licence, you must get one before collecting your dog.

Dog faeces

Under Section 22 of the Litter Pollution Act 1997 it is an offence to allow a dog under your control to foul a public place. This means the owner/person in charge of the dog is required to remove dog faeces and dispose of them in a suitable, sanitary manner. You can complain to the District Court under the litter laws against an owner or someone in charge of a dog who allows that dog to foul public places and who fails to act responsibly. Before you do this, you must first inform the dog owner of your intention by completing a special form available from the Dog Control Unit of your local authority. Read more about litter laws.

http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/environment/animal_welfare_and_control/control_of_dogs.html

The advice I would give is to take note of any dogs you see straying in your estate i.e. any dog out without its owner.
If you contact the dog warden they will call out to the dog owner/s and inform them that there have been complaints but they do not say who has been complaining if you want to keep it that way.
If you just want to keep it to the dog that is defecating in your garden that is enough complain about but if there are other dogs or any other unsocial behaviour like chasing cars and bikes, nuisance barking, opening bin bags etc, note that too.
A dog warden will usually call out and ask dog owners if they have a licence for their dogs and will inform them of the laws around responsible dog ownership. Some people are not aware of those laws and learning that it is not ok or that it can carry a fine can be enough to stop the nuisance behaviour. If after that the behaviour still continues you can complain the the district court, the dog warden would support you with this.

The residents association put this into practice in our estate and it has really helped. People are now out walking their dogs and cleaning up after them instead of just opening the door and letting them out.

pwurple

That is good advice above.

I did have a similar problem before. The old man in question had the dog on a lead, but let the dog use my driveway every single day. I had a small baby at the time, and driving a buggy through this was wrecking my head.

I asked him to stop, he shrugged and told me to pick it up myself if it was a problem.

I took a shovel and evey day for a week, transported it to the mans doorstep. It stopped then.