COMHAIRLE CONTAE ÁTHA CLIATH THEAS
SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL
MEETING OF RATHFARNHAM / TEMPLEOGUE / FIRHOUSE / BOHERNABREENA AREA COMMITTEE
Tuesday, April 18, 2023
MOTION NO. 7
MOTION: Councillor Alan Edge
To ask management to report on the number of engagements between the dog warden and dog owners without effective control of their animal in the area covered by this Committee in the past 12 months, mindful of the impact out of control dogs have on wildlife, livestock and members of the public.
REPORT:
South Dublin County Council currently employs two full time Dog Wardens within the administrative area.
The Dog Warden Service encourages responsible dog ownership and continually promotes the benefits of microchipping dogs and how this will assist in reuniting dog owners with their dogs if lost or worse stolen. Last year 496 stray and surrendered dogs were dealt with by the wardens, happily 127 dogs were reunited with their owners and a further 348 had been rehomed by the end of the year.
As part of their enforcement role under the Control of Dogs Act, the Dog Wardens will:
- Respond to complaints relating to dogs not under effectual control and/or dangerous dogs, including incidents of sheep worrying.
- Carry out licence checks and initiate enforcement proceedings if necessary
- Collect unwanted and stray dogs
The Dog Wardens also deal with complaints related to dogs on a daily basis e.g. Barking dogs, Stray dogs, Surrendered dogs, Nuisance dogs. The service regularly receives complaints about other animals including foxes, cats and swans. These are referred on to appropriate agencies, where possible. The wardens patrol all areas of the County including parks and open spaces. The Wardens liaise with the Park Ranger Service in respect of the control of dogs in council parks and open spaces.
The Dog Wardens can be contacted on 01 414 9213.
Since the introduction of the Control of Dogs Act and subsequent programmes of awareness and enforcement the number of sheep worrying incidents reduced by approximately 90%.
There were 27 incidents of agressive behaviour by dogs towards people reported to South Dublin County Council in 2022. 11 of these cases involved physical injury to a person. These incidents occurred County wide.
There were 4 incidents of livestock worrying reported to the Council in 2022 during which 90 sheep and 15 fowl were attacked, resulting in the death of 12 sheep and 6 fowl. All of these incidents ocurred in the area covered by this committee. Where dog owners could be identified, the Dog Warden engaged with them and appropriate enforcement action was taken.