Dogs and animals
The animal welfare team has a wide variety of roles including licensing of animal establishments, dog fouling, stray dogs, nuisance and dangerous dogs.
Dog wardens
Most people know about the dog wardens, who are very involved in promoting dog training and welfare around the district as well as dealing with found, lost and straying dogs. Education of the public in responsible dog ownership is also an important role for us.
We deal with complaints of nuisance from animals such as dogs barking, noisy cockerels or odour from domestic animals. We will take any complaints or enquiries about animals; we will not always be able to solve the problem but will usually be able to refer you to someone who can.
Licensing
We also license a number of animal establishments, which we inspect at least once a year. These include pet shops, riding stables, boarding kennels and catteries, dog breeders, dangerous wild animals and one zoo.
Cats
Current legislation has a great deal of control over dogs but hardly any for cats. The only nuisance that can be controlled is if a neighbour is affected by a strong unpleasant odour from a property caused by cats. In extreme circumstances this would be covered as “Statutory Nuisance” by the Environmental Protection Act 1990.
Cruelty
The RSPCA deals with cases of cruelty to animals.
Education
We give a number of free talks in schools. We are happy to give talks and lectures to any group or body within the district about our work.
Hampshire County Council's Animal Health Officers
The county council also has a role in animal health and welfare issues. Their Animal Health officers regularly visit farms, abattoirs, and transit points to check that the health of livestock is maintained. Livestock movements are checked and monitored so that animals can be quickly traced in the event of an outbreak of serious notifiable disease, such as foot and mouth or swine fever. They also inspect animal feed producers and test the quality of fertilisers and feeding stuffs.