Dog A-Z > L > Legal Responsibilities (Law) > Dog Control Orders

Dog Control Orders

Since 6th April 2006 local authorities (LAs) in England and Wales have had the power to introduce new Dog Control Orders under the Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005.

What does this mean to you as a dog owner?

This means that your LA is allowed to designate areas of land currently being used by the general public where one or more of the following rules might apply;

• You must keep your dog on a lead.

• You must put your dog on a lead and keep it on when told to do so by an authorised officer.

• Dogs may be completely banned from specific areas.

• You may not take more than a specified number of dogs onto land.

• You must remove dog faeces.

If you don’t abide by these Orders, you could be fined up to £1000.

Not all LAs are rushing to impose such restrictions, but if they do these Orders could significantly restrict your dog’s enjoyment of parks and countryside where you usually walk.  LAs must publish a notice describing the proposed Orders in a local newspaper, so please look out for these and let other dog walkers know.

Children’s play areas and sports grounds are not necessarily the best place for excited dogs to be running around, and some areas are notorious for having owners letting dogs run off lead irresponsibly. Therefore, Dog Control Orders, if imposed clearly and fairly, can play a good role in balancing the needs of a community. 

What can you do?

• Contact your council to see what DCOs they are imposing and where – write to them and oppose to any ban you feel is unnecessary.  Consider setting up a local campaign group.

• Contact us at Dogs Trust (info@dogstrust.org.uk) so that we can address LA’s if we feel their proposals are too restrictive.

• Check out KC Dog at www.thekennelclub.org.uk/item/244 who are regularly updating their website to show which local authorities are proposing Orders, and they have guidelines to help you influence public policy.