Four fined for dog identification offences

Residents are being urged to ensure they comply with the law to ensure their dog can get back to them, following fines given to four residents by Leicester Magistrates’ Court.

The Control of Dogs Order (1992) makes it the law for a dog to wear a collar bearing the name and address (including postcode) of the owner engraved or written on it, or engraved on a tag.

If stray dogs reported to the Council cannot be identified, they are picked up by the Dog Warden and taken to the kennel. The stray dogs service cost Blaby District Council over £20,000 in the last financial year.

Four residents were recently fined at Leicester Magistrates’ Court after their dogs were picked up as strays in the district because they did not have proper identification. Carys Archer of Glenfield and Lance Bellingham of Enderby pleaded guilty and we fined £440 each, with £140 costs and a £44 victim surcharge.

Two other residents also failed to comply with notices requesting updates to microchip information, which is an offence under the Microchipping of Dogs (England) Regulations 2015. Joanne Seager of Elmesthorpe was fined £440, with £210 costs and a £44 victim surcharge, while Agne Baneviciute of Narborough was fined £660 and ordered to pay £85 costs and a £66 victim surcharge. Neither entered a plea for either offence at Leicester Magistrates’ Court.

John Richardson, Strategic Director at Blaby District Council, said: “Dogs found straying but wearing collar and tags are usually returned home directly by the finder, using the mobile phone number or address written on it.

All of the unnecessary money we have to spend to have a dog collected and the money the owner then has to pay to claim their dog back can be avoided by a simple tag costing just a few pounds.”