PEOPLE leaving dog poo on the floor is annoying – and even more so if it’s left on your private property.
One person has revealed they were left fuming after a dog owner didn’t pick up their pet’s faeces on their driveway, so decided to get their own back.
They shared how they had a security camera which documented the moment the dog ‘did the deed’ and the footage enabled them to track the owner down.
The homeowner explained: “Someone let their dog s*** on our drive.
“We had a security camera.
“I trawled through hours of footage, found the incident (bloke stood and watched his dog take a lengthy crap, looked around and walked off).
“I took a screen grab, posted on the street WhatsApp group, found the culprit and his address, printed the screen grab, laminated it, picked up the s*** and stapled the big to the laminated picture.”
The angry homeowner said they then took matters into their own hands and returned the poop to the owner of the defecating dog.
They added they had left the incriminating photo and poo bag “on their doorstep.”
It included a message which read: “Top tip! Carry a poo bag as well as a phone.”
The homeowner said it was both the “pettiest” and “proudest” moment of their life.
Many people said they would have also taken revenge if it had happened to them.
One wrote: “This is the level of pettiness I aspire to.”
Another said: “I am absolutely here for this behaviour.”
A third commented: “Not all heroes wear capes. Some have laminators and a whole bunch of spare time.”
However one person said: “Could he press charges?”
It is illegal to leave dog poo in a public area, as not only is it unpleasant, it can also be dangerous.
Fines for uncollected dog mess vary between constituencies, but dog owners could receive a Fixed Penalty Notice of up to £100 on the spot if they have not cleared up their dog’s mess.
In rare cases, dog walkers can even be given a fine for failing to produce a dog poo bag when walking their pets in public.
While the charges can vary from council to council, refusing to pay up can land you with a day in court, and a £1,000 fine.
IF you keep finding dog poo on your lawn or driveway you should report it to the council - not the police.
After you report the issue via the council website, a dog warden should get in touch.
It is important to note that unless you know the identity of the dog owner, there isn’t much the council can do.
They will clean up the mess if it is on council land.
If you do know who the owner of the dog is and you have their address, you can give this to the council for an environmental enforcement officer to investigate and fines could be issued where necessary.
Police state clearly that dog fouling is not a policing matter and fouling on public land should be taken up with your local council.
Polling revealed over a quarter of dog owners asked haven’t bothered to clean up after their pet, and over a third of this number admitted this is something they frequently failed to do.
Despite common belief, it’s not possible to get out of paying a fine if the dog doesn’t belong to you— you would still be liable for any fines if you fail to clean up after them.
According to the Dog Fouling Act of 2016, responsibility lies with “the person in charge of the dog” at the time of the incident.
One woman was fined £1,000 for failing to adequately remove dog poo from her garden, although such cases are very rare.
