as part of tough new regulations for Council tenants

The changes will be phased in over the next 12 months for existing tenants but will apply from later this year for new occupiers of council homes.

The move follows growing public concern about the lack of effective controls on dog ownership.  In the last year there have been two serious attacks in the borough where the dog owners were living in a council-owned property. Both resulted in criminal prosecutions. Groups of youths have also been seen training fighting dogs on the Doddington Estate.

The council warned tenants last year that they could risk losing their home if they failed to ensure their animal was properly controlled.

In a separate initiative the council had also urged environment minister Jonathan Shaw to consider re-introducing a new form of dog licence.

The blanket micro-chipping policy will cover all dogs regardless of breed. It will be provided free of charge to council tenants. Leaseholders may have to pay a basic fee of around £10 although this is under review.

There are an estimated 4,000 dogs living on the borough's estates. Recording ownership details on a database will help the council to deal quickly with strays and take action against tenants who allow their dogs to cause a nuisance.  

Council leader Edward Lister said: "The council has been dismayed by the Government's failure to tackle the growing problem of mainly young people encouraging their dogs to behave in an intimidating manner.

"We think the long term answer is a new form of licence which requires the dog owner to pass a fit and proper person test. At the moment most of the problems are caused by young people aged between 13 and 17 who have little or no understanding of the responsibilities of ownership.

"We don't have the powers to provide a borough-wide registration and chipping scheme but we can introduce this on our own estates. We hope the lessons learned from this experiment will encourage ministers to look again at the potential for a national registration and licensing scheme.

"Our scheme is a simple way of making sure we have ownership details for dogs on the borough's estates. I am sure it will have the support of all responsible dog owners as well as other estate residents. Tenants and other household members will have the responsibility of bringing their dog in for chipping. If they refuse, they will be in breach of their tenancy conditions.

"There are no restrictions on ownership. The council will not be telling people they can or cannot own a dog. But where a dog is causing a problem, having its details on a database will help us track down the owner and speed up prosecutions."  

Micro-chipping will be carried out by the council's dog control unit which has been offering the service on request for the last 10 years. The procedure is quick and painless and once completed does not need to be repeated.  The unit's procedure has been commended by Battersea Dogs and Cats Home and is often cited as an example of best practice by the RSPCA.

People with concerns about the way a dog is being treated can report these in confidence to the council's 24 hour help line on 020 8871 7532 - This number can be used to alert the council's dog control team to any instance of irresponsible dog ownership at any address in the borough. Those targeted for action could face prosecution in the courts leading to an anti social behaviour order (ASBO).

The proposals were welcomed by residents representatives at last night's meeting of the Borough Residents Forum (June 11) and will be considered by the housing committee on June 19. You can view the report at www.wandsworth.gov.uk/osc/housing  Paper 08-544

June 13, 2008