What do you think of this !


  • Fined ?1,000 for long dog leash
    Sarah Coles
    Jun 11th 2010 at 9:00AM

    Filed under: Weird and Wonderful

    There was a time when a dog was a man's best friend - a slightly unpredictable one if you're Obama! Now he's his financial liability. If you're not facing a ?1,000 fine for your pooch's ability to soil the streets without you noticing, you're being sued for the trauma caused by an over-enthusiastic greeting of a postman.

    And now it seems you could be fined if your dog's lead is too long.

    The rule stipulates that leads cannot be any longer than 6ft 8inches. It has been part of the armory of local wardens since the last government brought in its laughable Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act. However, while a few London councils have brought in the rule, it hadn't spread until now.

    This week wardens in Greater Manchester were told they had to clamp down on dog walkers with longer leads.

    The idea is that if you have a shorter lead you are more likely to clean up after your pet, because at a distance you either can't see them up to their tricks, or you can't be bothered to walk all the way over to them in order to clean up their little gift to the world.

    There will be those who support the move - those who spend an inordinate amount of time scraping the bottom of their shoes on spare pieces of grass after a run-in with a rogue dog owner.

    However, there are those who will think it's barking mad. It certainly seems a touch on the heavy-handed side, as they are essentially fining someone for being more likely to break the law. By the same token you should surely be able to fine people for buying a car than can do more than the speed limit, or for buying anything in a carrier bag, which they may later use to litter the streets with.

    So what do you think? Is this yet another sign of the rules brought in by the last government to turn us all into criminals and squeeze every penny possible


  • Many counties in the US have leash laws that stipulate that the leash length must be no longer than 6-8 feet in length depending on the county. Flexi leashes cause all sorts of issues, not just the issue of owners not scooping poop. There is also the issue of whether the person truly has the dog under control and can adequately prevent incidents like that overly enthusiastic greeting of strangers, a potential dog fight, etc.


  • Hee hee. I heard this on Chris Evans show this morning. What will they think of next? incidentaly, if your interested, this weeks sporting challenge is dog agility. Should be a laugh with Chris Evans.

    The councils should make children wear reigns no longer than 6ft long! 😃


  • I wonder if there was a Dog unleashed in a Park and a Dog on a long leash, who would be fined?
    I always pick up after Malaika and i think it's correct that laws are in place to ensure this happens. However what makes me see Red is the things dirty humans leave around putting us all in danger, such as used syringes, Tampons, condoms, cigerette buts as well as general litter. All these things apart from syringes i have seen in our local nature reserve. The only notices up are to remind Dog owners they can be fined for not cleaning up after their Dog.


  • ….......


  • This happens regularly in Mississauga, Ontario….City by-law officers will hang out just outside the leash free park and ding offenders who have their dogs off leash outside of the leash free zone. One gentleman, was fined $3000 for having 3 Goldens off leash, just a few feet away from the main gate of the dog park. :eek:

    It would be grand if they would monitor my neighbourhood as well as they did at the park, seeing as regardless of how long the leash is on some dogs, some owners don't even bother cleaning up after their pets. And, it only gets worse during the winter as some think that the snow will concele what evidence was left behind, only for it to poop it's rear head in the Spring...just plain horrible.

    LOL...sometime reading posts like this and other stories like DNA testing poop aren't as wild and wacky as they seem! 😃

    http://www.prlog.org/10683637-dna-may-be-used-to-identify-dog-poop.html

    Dogs should be on-leash and flexi-leashes should have a marker on the tether to caution owners when their dog is possibly breaking any by-laws.


  • So let me get this straight…dogs need to be able to run and jog a little bit to exercise properly....but you are required to keep them leashed, which is reasonable. Only now, they won't be able to because the leash is only 6 2/3 feet long....and we'll start getting in trouble with SPCA for not caring for them properly because they are either getting fat or escaping so they can run for a bit.

    Danged if you do, danged if you don't. I say, leave us alone and if it's that big of a deal, write the owners for noxious littering after they walk away from their dog's leavings. Fine that person a Grand for the heinous crime of leaving some dog poo on the grass. Forget about the drug dealers, prostitutes and thieves out there. Dog poo is important stuff.


  • I think the fact that they put the slant on it that it is to prevent unscooped poop 1is ridiculous. Personally, I am not against a 6 - 8 foot leash law. My dogs have been attacked by dogs on Flexis and idiot owners who can not control their dogs and the fact that a there is a maximum length defined in the law means that when their dogs attack mine, I have a better chance of recooping my vet bills through small claims.

    I think it is ridiculous to sit and ticket people outside a dog park but would like to see people ticketed who are allowing their dogs to terrorize neighborhoods. I also think it is important in the city plan to have areas where people can take their dogs to exercise either on a long line or off leash but by having them as designated areas, those of us who choose to walk our dogs on a 6 foot leash should not have to worry about our dogs being harrassed by those dogs that are "just being friendly".


  • @AJs:

    Forget about the drug dealers, prostitutes and thieves out there. Dog poo is important stuff.

    It is that! It can tell an owner so much about the health of their animal. I would much prefer slapping a big fine on the people who flick cigarette butts onto the ground. What an assinine action. During this time of year that can start major fires.


  • I am all for dog to be leashed and walked. But I also work for the post office. We had a carrier bitten in the butt..sounds funny, but the german shepard bit her several times on both cheeks and she had open wounds and severe blood clots.
    She was off work for a long while, couldn't sit, had to lay on her stomach..and it was pretty awful for her.
    So, when postal carrier over react to dogs, its for a reason. I don't get out when a dog is out and loose.


  • Keepers, owners, what have you, it is all about the humans involved. I have a "long" flexi - 20 ft.- that I use when walking in the park that my property abuts to, and I always pick up after my friend. In my jurisdiction I am completely legal but I have to deal with the fools thinking that a city park is the right place to (illegally) ride their dirt bikes. Pay no attention to the fact that they occasionally come into my yard and leave tracks. But I can be fined for not picking up after my friend? Sometimes I think we (humans) are idiots.

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