Latest news with #dogcontrol
RNZ News
a day ago
- RNZ News
Auckland council calls for overhaul of dog control
Auckland Region 4:47 pm today The team trying to tame Auckland's problem with roaming dogs is calling for an overhaul of national dog control laws. Auckland Council suggests tools like fencing requirements for dog owners and greater powers to detain dogs. In the last year there have been nearly 17,000 reports of roaming dogs in Auckland. There have been reports of 1,500 attacks on other dogs and 1,300 attacks on people - although that could be much higher according to ACC claim data. Auckland Council's General Manager of Licensing and Compliance Robert Irvine spoke to Melissa Chan-Green.
RNZ News
a day ago
- RNZ News
Roaming dogs: Council wants more powers to deal with problem
Animal management officers need more power to detain dogs after an attack had happened, Auckland Council has heard. File photo. Photo: 123RF Councils need more control over managing dog-related issues from the government, Auckland Council says. Several measures to tackle the problem of roaming and uncontrolled dogs in the Auckland region were proposed at the council's Regulatory and Safety Committee meeting on Tuesday. These included fencing requirements for dog owners and mandatory desexing for impounded dogs before they are returned to their owners. Licensing and compliance general manager Robert Irvine said animal management officers also needed more power to detain dogs after an attack had happened. But he said these changes could not happen without legislative change. "The council is doing everything it can to tackle this issue from multiple angles, but without legislative reform, we are always going to be limited. "The changes we are proposing make good common sense and would greatly improve our ability to protect Aucklanders from dog-related harm. They would not affect the majority of dog owners, who we know are responsible." The council's animal management unit received 16,739 reports of roaming dogs in the past year. There were 1341 reports of dog attacks on people and 1523 on other animals in that period. But Irvine said ACC claim data showed the actual number of dog attacks was much higher. "Most serious dog attacks on children happen in the family home and go unreported to the council, meaning we have no ability to investigate. "Introducing mandatory reporting would allow us to intervene and put measures in place to prevent attacks from happening again." Regulatory and Safety Committee chair Councillor Josephine Bartley said stricter rules around fencing and desexing were much needed. "Most dog owners in Auckland are responsible and do the right thing, but there is a group that just doesn't seem to care. Their actions are putting our communities at risk, particularly our tamariki." The council said it had already done targeted free desexing and registration drives, public awareness and education campaigns, and opened a new adoption and education centre in Pukekohe which had increased shelters capacity to hold dangerous dogs. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
BBC News
25-06-2025
- BBC News
Ashfield council deputy leader fined over out of control dogs
A deputy council leader has been ordered to pay more than £1,800 in court after admitting being in charge of dangerously out-of-control Hollis, deputy leader of Ashfield District Council in Nottinghamshire, appeared at Mansfield Magistrates' Court on Tuesday charged with three counts of being in charge of a dangerously out-of-control dog in Huthwaite, where he lives, on 12 December 32-year-old, of Yew Tree Close, also pleaded guilty to resisting a constable in the execution of his duty at his home address on 9 January. He was ordered pay a fine and costs totalling £1,813. The dangerous dog charges related to two rottweilers, a spaniel cross and an unknown breed - now all under a Contingent Destruction Order (CDO), which means they could be destroyed if they are not kept under proper control. Ashfield District Council has a Public Space Protection Order (PSPO) that covers a number of rules around dogs. Those rules include requiring dogs to be on leads in specific areas, excluding dogs from some spaces and requiring a person to put their dog on a lead when asked to by an authorised officer. Hollis, of the Ashfield Independents party - and a former Nottinghamshire County councillor - was ordered to pay a fine of £520 plus £1,000 in compensation, a victim surcharge amounting to £208 and £85 in court costs. The deputy leader was convicted of careless driving in September 2022, a day after being found guilty for harassing his neighbours during the Coronavirus lockdown. He was removed from his position at the time but did not resign, and was later returned to the February 2024, Hollis was fined at Nottingham Magistrates' Court for failing to declare a financial interest.
Daily Mail
19-06-2025
- Daily Mail
Teacher, 26, whose Cane Corso bit a baby is fined and ordered to muzzle dog
A teacher whose Cane Corso bit a baby sitting outside their home has been fined and ordered to muzzle her dog outdoors. The child was left with several puncture wounds to the back and right arm, which are expected to leave permanent scars after the attack in Longton. Lucy Bamber, 26, was walking her two dogs on leads when her Cane Corso Hugo bit the baby who was on the driveway of their home on March 2. April Lamai, mitigating, told North Staffordshire Justice Centre that Bamber is 'remorseful' and 'willing to do everything in her power to prevent this from ever happening again.' The court was told Bamber was fully cooperative with police and the victim's family and has no previous convictions, reprimands or cautions and is of positive good character. Bamber, of Priestley Drive, Longton, pleaded guilty to being the owner of a dog dangerously out of control and being the owner of a dog which was dangerous and not kept under proper control, the Stoke Sentinel reports. 'Hugo had never acted in this manner before,' Miss Lamia said. Miss Lamia said that Bamber was walking her two dogs Hugo, a two-year-old, and a nine-year-old Staffordshire Bull, who were both on a lead, when she crossed the road after seeing a cat. 'She only noticed the child after Hugo bit the victim. She immediately pulled the dog away. She was shocked by Hugo's behaviour,' Miss Lamia said. 'When Hugo is in public he always has a muzzle. He has a short lead. He wears a hi-vis jacket which says, "I need space", on it. He is undergoing extra obedience and recall training. She no longer walks Hugo on that road.' Miss Lamia described Bamber as a 'fit and proper owner' who has owned two dogs previously and has shown she is a 'responsible owner'. Bamber was fined £487 and ordered to pay £300 compensation to the mother of the child, £85 costs, and a £197 surcharge. The magistrates said they were satisfied Hugo does not constitute a danger to public safety because of his previous behaviour and it being an isolated incident. The magistrates told Bamber: 'You are a fit and proper person to own this particular type of dog. You must keep Hugo under proper control. We impose the following conditions. When outside he must have a fixed lead and a muzzle. These will last for the whole of Hugo's life. If you do not comply, Hugo may be destroyed.'
BreakingNews.ie
11-06-2025
- BreakingNews.ie
Widow of murder victim ordered to pay €11,000 for care of seized XL Bully dogs
A judge has ordered the widow of murder victim Jason Hennessy Sr to pay over €11,000 for the care of her four XL Bully dogs, seized in Dublin after one escaped and terrorised gardaí. Veronica Maher (54) pleaded that her four beloved restricted breed pets were all she had to remember her late husband, who was shot dead in a Blanchardstown steakhouse on Christmas Eve, 2023. Advertisement Ms Maher, of Sheephill Avenue, Blanchardstown, came before Dublin District Court on May 28th to challenge a Garda application under the Control of Dogs Act for an order to destroy Oddie, Reggie, their mother Medusa, and the fourth dog, Joe. They have been in a dog pound and given veterinary attention since being taken from Ms Maher on April 4th. Granting a destruction order for all four, Judge Anthony Halpin had noted evidence of six gardaí at the scene on March 28th when four officers fled from Oddie, who escaped from Ms Maher's garden. He accepted they had to take 'evasive action to save themselves from being savaged by an XL Bully dog.' He said they were terrified, and 'I can only imagine the utmost horror which they experienced.' Advertisement However, Ms Maher is to appeal, attempting to overturn the ruling in the Circuit Court about Oddie and possibly bringing a judicial review of the destruction order being extended to the other three dogs. This has led to a temporary halt on the animals being put down pending the outcome of the appeals. On Wednesday, the case resumed, and she appeared again before Judge Halpin to consider costs. Garda Sergeant Michael Harkin said the upkeep of the dogs for the past nine weeks was €10,716, and there was a €500 vet's bill. Advertisement Judge Halpin granted the costs order for Ms Maher to pay €11,216 but also acceded to Ms Maher's lawyer's application for a transcript of the original hearing for the appeal. During the earlier hearing, Judge Halpin said Oddie 'left the premises and pursued the gardaí was dangerous and could easily have fatally wounded one or all those gardaí,' he remarked. Visibly upset, Ms Maher denied opening a gate to unleash the unmuzzled dog on gardai patrolling in her cul-de-sac. She said the dogs were part of her family, like their children, and Oddie slept in her king-sized bed. Advertisement The judge also noted evidence that she had these dogs to protect the property. She testified that three-year-old Oddie jumped the front garden wall, and she denied the accusation that she set the dog on the garda. She also claimed Medusa had also been in the yard at the time. The court heard the other two were in cages in the back garden, and Oddie had already damaged a rear garden exit. Garda Sean McLoughlin alleged that when he got near her house, she told him, 'Get the f**k away from my house yous murderers'. Advertisement He was in absolute fear for his life that he would be viciously attacked by the dog, which chased and tried to bite him. He alleged she let the dog out her front garden gate. He and three colleagues fled to different gardens, with one standing on a wall until backup arrived a few minutes later. He believed that Oddie was a credible threat and he would be set on them again. Ms Maher brought the dog back into the house, and she denied telling gardaí, 'If yous don't fuck off now, I'll get him back out here.' Witness Kayleigh McEntee (26), of Waterville Row, Blanchardstown, was at the house and contradicted the evidence that Ms Maher opened the gate. She also said the dogs were safe and often around children. Ireland Judge orders 'destruction' of XL Bully dogs owned... Read More Three more gardaí said they also had had to flee to gardens in the cul de sac, with one telling Judge Halpin that he feared he would be killed. Photographs were handed in showing some of the dogs with family and children. In his ruling, Judge Halpin described one image of an infant surrounded by two enormous XL Bully dogs as upsetting 'given the potential ferocity of these animals'. He found that the dogs were dangerous and not under proper control.
