UK Laws Directly Affecting Dog Owners

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Laws Directly Affecting Dog Owners.
Your legal responsibility as a dog owner.
As a responsible dog owner, it is important for you to meet with the requirements of the law. There are a number of Acts and Orders which all dog owners should be aware of:

Identification
• Control of Dogs Order 1992
This requires that every dog, while in a public place, wears a collar with the name and address of his owner inscribed on it or on a disc attached to it. If a collar is not worn when out in a public place, the dog may be seized by the police and treated as a stray. Also the owner, and any person in charge of the dog permitting him to be in a public place without a collar, will each be guilty of an offence and may be prosecuted and fined.

If your dog does stray, you should immediately contact your local dog warden (through the Environmental Health Department at your local council) and the local police station. The Environmental Protection Act 1990 allows for your dog to be seized and sold or destroyed if unclaimed after a seven day period.

• Microchipping
Sadly, dogs are often destroyed because their owners cannot be found and the dog cannot be found a home. If a dog is microchipped with his own unique identification number registered on a national database, owners can be traced very quickly and the dog can be returned safe and sound.

Control
• Town Police Clauses Act 1847 (outside London) and Metropolitan Police Act 1839 (London)
These Acts make it an offence to allow an unmuzzled, ferocious dog to be left at large, or for a person to set on or to urge any dog attack, worry or put in fear any person or animal in the street.

• Dogs Act 1871
Under this Act, a court may, upon complaint that a dog is dangerous and not kept under proper control, order the owner to keep him under proper control or to be destroyed.

• Animals Act 1971
Under this Act a dog may be shot, without warning, by a farmer for worrying his livestock and the owner could face criminal prosecution for the same offence under the Dogs (Protection of Livestock) Act 1953.

• Road Traffic Act 1988
This makes it an offence to have a dog on a designated road without the dog being held on a lead.

• Guard Dogs Act 1975
It is an offence to use or permit the use of a guard dog on any premises unless the handler, who is capable of controlling him, is present on the premises and the dog is under control. The dog must be secured so that he is not at liberty to go about the premises. A warning that a guard dog is present must be clearly exhibited at each entrance to the premises.

• Dangerous Dogs Act (DDA) 1991
There are two main sections to this Act. Section 1 applies to four specific breeds of dog including ‘the type of dog known as the pit bull terrier’. Owners of these breeds had to comply with certain legal requirements, including having their dog registered, neutered, microchipped and tattooed. One of the main problems with this law is that the pit bull terrier is not a recognised breed in the UK. As a result, many owners of cross breeds which resemble a pit bull terrier ‘type’ have been charged under the Act.

Section 3 applies to all dogs, making it a criminal offence to allow a dog to be dangerously out of control in a public place. This includes instances where there is fear that an injury might occur.

Owners found guilty under either section of the Act could have their dog destroyed, face the possibility of six months in prison and/or a fine not exceeding level 5 (at present up to £5,000).

Responsible Ownership
• Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005
Since 6th April 2006 local authorities in England and Wales have had the power to introduce new Dog Control Orders under this Act.
These Orders may restrict where you can walk your dog (on or off lead), how many dogs you can walk at one time, and makes it an offence if a person in charge of a dog fails to clean up its faeces. Designated land may include roads, parks and other public areas within the local authority’s boundaries; in fact any land which is open to the air and to which the public are permitted to have access.

If you don’t abide by these Orders, you could be fined up to £1000. It is no defence to claim ignorance of the dog's actions, the law.

Protection of Animals
There are several Acts on the Statute Book which protect dogs from ill treatment, among them are the following:
• Animal Welfare Act
This Act came into force on the 27th March 2007 in Wales and the 6th April 2007 in England.
This Act introduces the new legal concept of a ‘duty of care’, which means that people are now legally obliged to ensure the welfare of the animals in their care. A person who owns a dog, or is looking after a dog (or other animals covered by the Act) must make sure the dog has a suitable environment; has a suitable diet; is able to exhibit normal behaviour patterns; is protected from pain, suffering, injury and disease. The carer must also address the dog’s need to be housed with, or apart from, other animals.
The Act also covers the sale of animals to people under 16 years, dog fighting, tail docking and more.

• Abandonment of Animals Act 1960
This Act extends the definition of cruelty to include abandonment of an animal.

New laws and bills in progress:
Animal Welfare Acts.
The Animal Welfare Act 2006 came into force on the 27th March 2007 in Wales and the 6th April 2007 in England.
The Animal Health and Welfare (Scotland) Act 2006 came into force in October 2006.
The Acts introduce the new legal concept of a ‘duty of care’, which means that people are now legally obliged to ensure the welfare of the animals in their care. A person who owns a dog, or is looking after a dog (or other animals covered by the Acts) must make sure the dog has a suitable environment; has a suitable diet; is able to exhibit normal behaviour patterns; is protected from pain, suffering, injury and disease. The carer must also address the dog’s need to be housed with, or apart from, other animals.
The Acts also cover the sale of animals to people under 16 years, dog fighting, tail docking and more.
Until recently animal welfare legislation meant that prosecution was only able to be made when actual cruelty or suffering was experienced. These Acts strengthen penalties for anyone convicted of an animal welfare offence, as well as giving law enforcement agencies the power to take action to prevent animal suffering before it has a chance to occur.

The RSPCA (or SSPCA in Scotland) is the only organisation that is able to prosecute owners and remove animals if they are being mistreated. Please call the RSPCA 24 hour national cruelty and advice line on 0300 1234 999 or the Scottish SPCA on 0870 73 77722.
The Acts are currently primary (framework) legislation and Dogs Trust is continuing to work with government on secondary legislation and codes of practice.

Scottish Dog Law:
Laws applying to dogs and their owners, only in Scotland.
Animal Health and Welfare (Scotland) Act 2006.
The Animal Health and Welfare (Scotland) Act 2006 came into force in October 2006.
This Act introduces the new legal concept of a ‘duty of care’, which means that people are now legally obliged to ensure the welfare of the animals in their care. A person who owns a dog, or is looking after a dog (or other animals covered by the Act) must make sure the dog has a suitable environment; has a suitable diet; is able to exhibit normal behaviour patterns; is protected from pain, suffering, injury and disease. The carer must also address the dog’s need to be housed with, or apart from, other animals.
The Act also covers the sale of animals to people under 16 years, dog fighting, tail docking and more.

Dog Fouling (Scotland) Act 2003
The Dog Fouling (Scotland) Act 2003 replaced Section 48 of the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982, which made it illegal for a dog to foul specified public places, regardless of whether the excrement was immediately removed or not.
The new Act is much more reasonable in that it now makes it an offence to fail to clear up after your dog, rather than of simply allowing a dog to foul. It also allows local authorities and police constables to issue fixed penalty notices to persons suspected of committing the offence.
Here are some relevant points from the Dog Fouling (Scotland) Act 2003:
• It is an offence to not clear up your dog’s excrement and dispose of it appropriately.
• This applies to all public places.
• Only one witness needs to be present – which means that you only need to be seen by one police officer or local authority representative.
• A fixed penalty notice may be issued to anyone suspected of committing an offence and there is a period of 28 days in which you may appeal against this.
• Failure to pay the fixed penalty notice or to request an appeal hearing within the 28 period will result in the fixed penalty being increased by 50% and being enforceable as if it were a court decree.
Exceptions to the above are when:
• The person has a reasonable excuse for failing to remove the faeces. This could be if the dog had diarrhoea and some was left after trying to clear up as much as possible. It could also be if removing the faeces would risk injury to the person clearing up, or to others.
• If every person who owns, occupies or controls the relevant land gives permission for people to let dogs defecate on their land, without clearing up. If more than one person owns, occupies or controls the land, then all must give their permission for this to apply.
• This law does also not apply to blind people with guidedogs and stockpersons in charge of working dogs. Disabled persons with assistance dogs are also exempted but only if their disability is such that they cannot physically pick the excrement up.