Petition provide proper funding to enforce dog laws

We do not hate dogs. We do not hate dog owners. We just believe that irresponsible dog owners should obey the law.

We have laws that require dog owners to keep proper and close control of their pet. We have dog control orders to ban dogs from some areas, creating dog free havens. Unfortunately these are not enforced adequately.

We, the undersigned, call on the government to provide proper funding to enforce the existing laws controlling dogs. This will require a national dog warden scheme, as the current system relying on local authorities to provide dog wardens has led to the current underfunding.

All dog free areas must be patrolled frequently enough to deter offenders. Areas where dog owners habitually allow dogs to run free out of control must be patrolled so that offending owners modify their behaviour.

Funding could come from licensing, both individual dogs and owners. Owners could be issued with a provisional licence to begin with.