Dog owners reminded of their civic ‘doody’

Dog owners have been reminded that, in the first instance if no bin is available, to carry their pet's muck home in a bag where it can be deposited safely.

The response from Director of Service Paddy Connaughton followed a gripe by Fianna Fáil's Clifford Kelly at the lack of dog poop bins available in the Kingscourt area.

He said that there was a circular loop used by many people in the town exercising but no bin. They also used the nearby Dun an Rí Forest Park where Coillte had also removed the bins, and he queried what was expected of people.

“In some cases it's being dumped on the road out to the park,” said Cllr Kelly.

“We can get a special bin yes, but our advice for people is to bring dog fouling home with them,” replied Mr Connaughton told the virtually held meeting last week.

“A lot of people are very unhappy about that,” remarked Cllr Kelly.

Aontú's Sarah O'Reilly asked if the council were planning to replace old bins in the Bailieborough area, saying that the older bins in some cases were “full all the time. They're well used.”

The lively debate stepped up a gear when Sinn Féin's Paddy McDonald lashed out at people using public street bins to dispose of household waste. He further stated that there were some dog owners who actively brought their dogs out at night and did not clean up after the animal.

“A lot of it has to do with education,” noted Cllr McDonald, with Aiden Fitzpatrick (FF) adding that people had to “educate themselves” first before they get a dog if they weren't aware of the need to clean up after them. “They just don't want them to go at their own home.”

Mr Connaughton concluded by praising the “heroic” effort put into cleaning towns and villages across the county by Tidy Towns volunteers.