NDWA Calls for National Standards for Dog Ownership
The NDWA at its 24th annual seminar in Birmingham is calling on the government to look at the possibility of National Standards to promote responsible dog ownership.
NDWA member Cuthbert Jackson’s presentation to members and guests outlined a series of proposals that would offer a standardised approach to dog control.
Approximately 18 years ago, NDWA submitted a 25 page document to the Home Office that outlined a series of proposals in relation to the Dangerous Dogs Act 1990 that included opposition to breed specific legislation. Unfortunately, the proposals were ignored at the time.
NDWA is of the belief that the reason the association is ignored is due to the fact that the government, civil servants, major animal welfare charities and others do not like what NDWA has to say.
The NDWA view is that the government should get rid of the Dangerous Dogs Act and replace it with a series of standards that deal with ‘Acts and Omissions’ and provide for ‘strict liability’ being vested in the owner or keeper of the dog.
The National Standards should therefore need to be understood by all people, dog owners and non dog owners alike.
In summary, the National Standards that NDWA seeks are:
National Standard 1 – Stray Dogs
That at all times a dog will be under the control of an owner or keeper and that all practical measures are taken to ensure that it does not stray.
National Standard 2 - Identification
That at all times a dog shall have some form of accurate identification that gives the name, address and telephone number of the owner or keeper.
National Standard 3 – Fouling
That at all times and in all public p[laces a dog owner must clean up after the dog when it fouls in a public place.
National Standard 4 – Dogs on Leads
At all times when against arterial roads (all A and B routes), a dog should be held on a lead.
National Standard 5 – Proper Control
A dog owner or any handler; should be prepared at all times to prevent a dog in their care or charge from causing unreasonable nuisance.
NDWA also believes that the decriminalisation of dog offences to the level of misdemeanours will free court time and that there should be a flat rate civil penalty of £60 for offenders in regard to fixed penalty action.
Control Notice
NDWA proposes the introduction of a ‘Control Notice’ that would be available to Police and Local Authorities that could be served as a ‘final notice’ to rectify a dog related issue. The notice would be served in the form of a letter or notice but would have to be signed by a senior police or local authority officer.
Court Control Order
Should a Control Notice be breached or should there be an urgent need to protect public safety, the Police or Local Authority could apply for a Court Control Order. The prosecution would have to prove beyond reasonable doubt that the incident warrants such an Order and it could be appealed against by the dog owner.
Some possible ‘orders’ could be:
* Neutering of the dog
* Order the owner and the dog to attend an accredited training course
* Incorporate previous reasons for the order
* Add up to several measures to control the dog
* Mandatory destruction based on the severity of the incident
NDWA also has ‘some thoughts’ on the possibility of mandatory insurance (as opposed to the wrongly reported ‘NDWA calls for compulsory dog insurance’)
A minimum level of insurance should be investigated. Dogs would be required to be permanently identified for insurance purposes and the level of insurance would be based on risk. This scheme would perhaps prevent local authorities having to administer any national dog registration scheme if one were to be brought in.
There could be specific exemptions, such as assistance dogs, PAT dogs and dogs that have been trained to a high level.
Should a dog owner be served with a Court Control Order, any subsequent dog insurance premium would be increased due to this official record.
Apart from a standard approach across the country in regard to dog control that would be known to the majority of dog owners, there would be a freeing up of court resources, more importantly though the issue of guilt would be transferred from the dog to the dog owner or keeper.
If anybody from the government reads this, why not consider getting in touch with NDWA, they may be excluded from certain government sponsored committees that deal with dog legislation and are ignored by the major animal charities and organisations because they ‘toe’ no party line, but surprisingly they do know about dog related issues.
The full report can be found at www.ndwa.co.uk
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