Edinburgh dog fouling: More than 1,000 poo complaints but just three fines handed out

More than 1,000 complaints were made to Edinburgh council last year about dog poo in parks, on pavements and in other public places - but only three dog owners were prosecuted or handed a fine.

The previous year there were just over 750 complaints, but again action was taken in only three cases. Under the Dog Fouling (Scotland) Act, passed by the Scottish Parliament in 2003, a person in charge of a dog must clear up any waste. But it is notoriously difficult to enforce the law because the fouling must be witnessed and the person responsible for the dog identified.

Not all dog owners clean up after their pets - but even though they are breaking the law, it is difficult to pursue those who refuse to pick up

Tory councillor Christopher Cowdy, who represents Fountainbridge/Craiglockhart, who has been pursuing the issue for some time, said the total of 1,125 complaints of dog fouling in 2023/24 was on a par with the figure of 1,288 street cleansing requests for dog fouling reported in October 2022. And the three fixed penalty notices compared with. four issued in 2021. 

“The likely reason for the low number of fines and prosecutions is that, although there only has to be one witness, the address of the owner is still needed and I think it is unlikely many people would be prepared to follow an owner home to get their address and report them.”

But he has called for a dog DNA database, with owners having to register their canines with the city council, so that in cases where dog poo is not cleared up, a sample could be tested and fines issued accordingly.

He siaid: “A dog DNA database could be an effective way to connect the waste with the owner, increase the chance of fines and prosecutions, and reduce the scourge of dog fouling in public places.  The transport and environment committee should soon see a report on options to help combat dog fouling. 

“At the moment, the council does not provide specific dog poo bins and have been reticent to include them in uplifts in the past, so I am very interested to see what other ideas they come up with.”

Transport and environment convener Scott Arthur said tackling dog fouling was a priority for the council administration. He said: ”All our litter bins accept dog waste which makes accessibility and capacity for people to deposit this far greater than just providing dog waste bins. Indeed,  the issue we face in Edinburgh is not due to a lack of bins used only for dog poo, it is the selfish behaviour of a small number of dog owners. 

“It is broadly accepted that the law makes it difficult to issue fines for dog fouling as the physical act must be witnessed. Nonetheless, we will work with residents who report problems. 

"The council aims to increase responsible dog ownership through education and better enforcement, and also decrease the environmental impact of poo. As part of this,  DNA testing is currently under active consideration. We actively encourage residents to get in touch with us on our website, by phone, email or social media if they come across a problem. ”