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| Neil Burton and his sidekick Hamish |
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The New Forest has just been rated one of the ten top places for dog walkers in the UK as part of a national competition run by the Good Dog Campaign.
The campaign is backed by the National Dog Warden’s Association and aims to promote responsible dog ownership. It encourages dog wardens and environmental health officers to nominate their favourite walks and this year (2006) NFDC’s dog warden Neil Burton entered the whole of the New Forest.
“We have some wonderful areas for dog walking here in the New Forest,” said Neil. “We have a whole range of attractive environments, including beaches, hills, forest, open countryside, rivers and villages. Dog walkers are always welcome as long as they treat their dogs responsibly and keep them under control.”
NFDC promotes responsible dog ownership through a variety of means, including a micro-chipping service, regular enforcement patrols, and education. The dog warden service ran 98 sessions on dog ownership and dog safety for schools and community groups in 2005/6 and recovered a record 329* dogs which had been lost, abandoned or injured in the last (financial) year. Of this number, 237 were reclaimed by their owners and 89 were re-homed, with only three having to be destroyed because of illness or injury.
“As well as looking after your dog properly, responsible dog ownership means cleaning up after your dog and using the proper waste bins, and making sure that your dog is not a danger to other people, other dogs or to livestock and wildlife,” said Cllr Maureen Holding, NFDC’s portfolio holder for health and social inclusion.
“There are many health benefits to walking and we have many hotels and campsites in the New Forest that welcome dogs. We are very pleased that the New Forest has been recognised as one of the most attractive places for dog walking and one of the top destinations for dog owners. We are blessed with an excellent dog warden here at NFDC who is always willing to go the extra mile to care for all dogs.”
(*Please note that some of this increase is explained by NFDC being part of a consortium of a number of Hampshire local authorities who have banded together to provide an Out of Hours service due to Hampshire Constabulary no longer having responsibility for dealing with stray dogs. The service operates in the evenings, at weekends and on public holidays) |
