Dog owners must pick up poop in public places
(CNS): Following complaints about dogs being walked on beaches and public areas that are not on leashes, the RCIPS and the Department of Agriculture’s Animal Welfare Unit have issued a reminder to pet owners about keeping dogs under control. They have also said that dog owners who fail to clean up after their pets if they defecate in a public place can be given a hefty fine.
“Failure to remove the faeces forthwith is an offense and is liable on conviction to a fine of $2,000,” according to a joint release.
Stressing that they they want to encourage responsible animal ownership, the DoA and RCIPS said that all dogs must be on a leash and under control in public. This is for the safety of all other members of the public as well as for the animals and includes taking them for walks on public roads or on beaches.
Failure to do so is an offense under the Animals Law (2015 Revision) and guilty pet owners could be fined $500 and be sentenced to three months in prison.
They also run “the risk of being considered to having a dog dangerously out of control where there is a reasonable apprehension that the dog may injure any person or domestic animal, whether it does so or not”, which could lead to a fine of $4,000 and six months in prison.
“There have been some reports of ferocious dogs but the numbers are not alarming,” police said.
Anyone who has questions about animal ownership and welfare can visit the DoA website and download the Responsible Dog Ownership Brochure.
They can also contact their local community police officer or community safety officer for assistance by visiting our Community Policing Page on the RCIPS website.
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Hey there! People think that “dog waste is a fertilizer”, but it’s NOT TRUE. Dogs have a high protein-based diet, which produces very acidic excrement and it can be very harmful for the whole atmosphere. So every dog’s owner should pick dog poop from public places
There’s dogs off leashes all the time at smb and they always run up to people and don’t leave them alone. I’m a dog person but some people REALLY don’t like dogs and it’s not fair to have your dogs running around and annoying people. Just saying…
What a load of crap, dogs are mans best friend and need exercise. They can not get that while they confined on a leash. There are certainly some miserable people out there.
Do you realize that not everyone likes dogs. I love dogs but sometimes it’s awkward for your dog to run up on me while I’m laying down on the beach. And who knows if it has fleas or something, or what if your dog is set off by someone in particular and attacks them, or your dog doesn’t like my dog and attacks? I smell a lawsuit… exactly.
I own two dogs and I can say with certainty that you are a selfish idiot.
I saw a lady at Governors Beach let her dog take a dump in the sand. The lady carried on walking until someone called her back. She decided to literally just put a couple of handfuls of sand on it and walked off. Any kid playing in the sand or adult who stood on it would have been covered. Utterly disgusting and selfish.
Some guy also let his dog poop right by my house a few months back and carried on walking. I chased him down and let him know in no uncertain terms that if I saw him doing that again, he would be eating it.
The headline is a little confusing. Who’s poop do the dog owners have to pick up?
Plain clothes police simply need to walk SMB and can issue up to 10 tickets daily. I was in the water while my kids (with another adult) was on the sand. A huge pit weighing more than my kid was unleashed running close to my kids. Meanwhile the owner is laughing about how many people have asked why the dog is not on a leash but “he is very friendly. Will only play not bite”. You cannot reason with these types of dog owners.
There’s a reason why “don’t worry, he doesn’t bite” has become a meme at this point
Big fine for not picking up dog poop.
Low fine for littering or throwing cigarettes all over the place.
People say poop doesn’t decompose and is toxic.
Sprays lawns and food with Chemical War weapons( Agent Orange).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agent_Orange
The ignorance is baffling in Cayman.
So you can set fire to your dog, starve them, physically abuse them and kick the $h*t out of them and e law about picking up poop has stirred such emotional outbursts. Wake up Cayman, enforce animal cruelty laws first and people will take more notice of animal law enforcement generally.
Yes, Cayman should enforce more animal cruelty laws, but sadly, I don’t think people would take more notice of animal laws even if they did. Most of those dog owners that are letting their dogs poop anywhere or are throwing their poop bags anywhere are already treating their dogs well. They seem to have this holier than thou attitude that their dog has the right to poop anywhere he/she wants. Reminds me of some parents who seem to believe that their children can act like wild animals in restaurants because for some reason they’re so special compared to the other patrons.
While out exercising during the lockdown I would regularly see a couple of dog owners allowing their dogs to crap on the South Sound rugby pitch. Particularly inconsiderate given that dog crap can contain bacteria that causes blindness.
Any dog found crapping in a public place whose poop isn’t immediately picked up and properly disposed of should be destroyed. They are vermin.
Its a dogs natural behavior. Now the owners failure to pick up, that’s a different story. Having them put down might be going a little far, but a whopping fine would be great. But as the article points out, that’s already the law – it just isn’t – surprise surprise – enforced.
We are first class in passing laws, and as effective as Afghanistan in enforcing any of them. Its not a surprise we have FATF up our proverbial – they have already worked out that Tara will pass laws at a drop of a hat, but we dont actually tend to do anything about them.
It seems to be a perennial problem with Cayman government – whether its drink driving, fronting Cayman business , paying employees pension deductions over to their pension schemes, or even exercising with your personal trainer during lock down – lots and lots of laws, many of which are either not enforced at all or selectively. Government seems to think if you pass laws and point at them the obligation stops.
Wait what?
The dog or the owners?? Who exactly are you suggesting should be destroyed?
I’ll explain it slowly for you.
Dogs have paws not hands. Paws are unfortunately unable to pick up poop. And not to judge but I’m almost positive that they also can’t buy poop bags in fosters. So it’s difficult task for a dog to pick up poop.
Destroying owners seems a little harsh but of course you’re welcome to your opinion. Any suggestions on method? Perhaps firing squad? Gas chamber? So many options.
My dog doesn’t need hands; he often eats his poop.
Incinerator is my pick
I agree, we should destroy their owner.
The dog can’t pick up its own poop without a thumb.
They should be banned by legislation from all beaches period.
There are already laws in place that do that but like all laws in cayman it’s one of those that gets ignored
Nonsense. They should banned from being off leash anywhere but INSIDE their property.
Dogs don’t own property.
Mine does, no way in hell my ex-wife getting her grubby hands on it.
Mine owns but he takes me for a walk three times a day.
Whatever imaginary rules we have now aren’t working. The owners of unleashed dogs on the beach ought to be banned from the beach (if that were possible) and loose their license to keep a dog (if they had one); but nothing will happen, because it continues to be a hassle for our full-time career police officers to leave their HQ Dominos tournament, or the a/c comfort of their Wendy’s takeout vehicle.
Exactly my point. TAKE YOUR CRAP BAGS TO YOUR OWN HOME. Inconsiderate and disgusting.
Many dog owners in Britannia routinely ignore the law and the signs and let their dogs off leash, poo everywhere. There are a few known dogs that have attacked others and are lucky not to have been put down and still walk freely often without leashes, and yes, pooing anywhere
It’s time to enforce the law
Is Britannia public? I don’t think it is. Pretty sure Mr Dart will say it’s not a public place either.
The whole golf course is public open space under the planning law, isn’t it?
It certainly is under the COVID regulations – not that they have been enforced there.
If your dog poos in your own living room or kitchen, you can leave it if you want, that’s between you and your dog. There is scarce public parkland in the Cayman Islands, every square inch is almost entirely privately owned (mostly via DRCL proxy companies), *BUT* as soon as you step out your front door, visible to others, and crossing their paths, you are “in a public place”. It’s up to the landowner as to whether they fence off their undeveloped land. If Dart were to gate-off all of it’s private land portfolio, jaws would drop to the floor and there would be rioting. It doesn’t mean you aren’t already under legal obligation to pick up – even if you happen to work for a Dart company, or feel they have wronged you in some way and/or owe you something. Anyone who doesn’t understand this, isn’t old enough to own a dog.
Look at that – you found a way to bitch about Dart even in a discussion about dog poo.
#dogshitmatters
When I jog along Moxam Rd, S. Church St and Denham Thompson I see quite a number of dog owners walking their dogs and just about all pick up the poop.In the UK the law is strictly enforced and everywhere you see green bins for depositing dog waste and 99% of dog owners use them, the system is to have 2 plastic bags one to put over your hand and pick up the poop and then place it in the other bag.Here we seem to have a different culture as most dog owners never walk their dogs and if they did would never dream of picking up the poop.
The Animals Law like the Littering Law is completely ineffective as it is never enforced.
No law is enforced. They are simply excuses to provide employment to large numbers of people, who are paid to achieve nothing. Most galling of all, many of the people being paid to achieve nothing are imports.
Why is it more galling to give something to an expat? Does being Caymanian mean only Caymanians can receive gifts? Personally, I don’t believe the government should be giving away cash to anyone NOT in need.
Sorry. You’re completely wrong about that. Clearly you haven’t worked in the CIG. It’s basically one giant unemployment service for caymanians.
In practice, only one bag is needed…turn the bag inside out, grab the loot, roll it up, knot it, AND dispose responsibly into a suitable somewhere that isn’t going to cause a bigger neighborhood problem.
The last two steps are important!
Of course, after publication of the Animals Law 2003, there weren’t supposed to be any prohibited breeds or crosses from the catalogue either. Any existing creatures of that time were to have been the last of their line. In the intervening years, our local vets have turned a complicit blind eye to all of the breeders of these. The genetic material such as semen and embryos from these breeds and crosses was also prohibited under the law. Many of these vets should have been professionally sanctioned for overseeing and perpetuating pit fighting, bursting shelters, wild dogs and other problems stemming from unlicensed animal breeding, but there are no regulations to do so. All of these existing animals should be neutered at the owner’s expense or destroyed per the law. Which politician is going to be the first to get ahead of their own corrupt personal ambitions and be the first to address these unpleasantries?
Nothing happens without a CAVO…who exactly is that person presiding over this farce?
Animals (Prohibited Dogs) Regulations (2012 Revision)
http://extwprlegs1.fao.org/docs/pdf/cay118811.pdf
Actually, I adopted a dog after Hurricane Ivan and I had no idea that I needed an annual licence. I suppose they had licensed the dog, but I don’t remember anyone telling me that, and he did have a tag that is now lost.
I wonder how many dog owners know about this requirement?
I am up to licensing the dog, but I personally think an annual licence is a bit much. Why is that necessary?
He should always have his tag on his collar when you are out with him. If he escapes his leash (they break/you let go for whatever reason) they can then trace him back to you. Dogs are not routinely chipped here for that purpose.
Why an annual fee? Because everything is ‘taxed’ here except your pay cheque.
The “license” is an honour-system notation in a hardcopy ledger in the desk at reception at the DOA agricultural office, and the tag is given free. It’s unclear how the free tag is supposed to be renewed every year, or why it’s free, or why there is no inspection of the dog to be licensed, or scan of microchip. It’s all broken.
You need a licence to breed dogs.
Except there were never any regulations put in force to support the licensing system for breeding dogs.
Sounds like you need to be neutered to ensure that you’re the last of your line. You are completely lost with this topic.
Has there ever been an Animals Law violation ticket written in the history of the Cayman Islands?
Is the community expected to call 9-1-1 on the hundreds of people we see walking with dogs off-leash or not picking up to dispatch an RCIPS officer for a 40+minute ETA on the scene?
We have so many questions in regards to the libraries of unenforced and suddenly important laws while there is no interest in distributing officers in the field…where do we find the Regulations cited in the Animals Law? Do they even exist?
Anyone who has tried to call the police about dogs and their owners know that nothing of substance will ever be done. Caymania.
Inconsiderate pet owners let their dogs crap anywhere they want… even when leashed. While some pick it up they also throw the bags into the bush or simply leave on the side of the road! But, what really ticks me off is the thoughtless ones that throw their dog crap bags in my roadside garbage bins. Some are tied tight, others just throw the untied poop bags into the bins so the smelly excrement sinks to the bottom or sticks to the side of bins. Sometimes they just miss the shot altogether and cannot be bothered to retrieve it. TAKE YOUR OWN DOG CRAP BAGS TO YOUR OWN HOME and dispose of them there. The next time I find someone doing this (I have already caught and had words with two sets of dog owners), it’s not going to be pretty. I am fed up!
We have 100’s of pounds of dog poo per month air-balled into our strata dumpster from surrounding vacant lands, much of it missing the mark, impacting the enclosure, falling behind the bin, and/or crushed at the next service interval. Many of the so-called dog-lover set are pile and thoughtless when it comes to being an acceptably decent neighbor.
How many pounds of dog poo makes a shitload?
If you really want to know: each lab or retriever can produce 1lb or more a day, over 3-5 sessions, figure 7-15lbs a week per animal. With 50+ dogs in the immediate vicinity, and once a week DEH service, that’s at least 350lbs a week into our rusty dumpster, open to the elements, and never designed to contain biohazardous materials.
Exactly my point. TAKE YOUR CRAP BAGS TO YOUR OWN HOME. Inconsiderate and disgusting.
Well now, that should make them shake in their draws!
This place is so sad when it comes to animals. Asshole people are allowed to leave their dogs outside to roam free or chained up in the front yard. The countless people I see with dogs chained to a tree in their front yard for protection of their home is sad these animals aren’t walked or loved.
There is no way to cancel or withdraw a license that never existed, or preclude offending owners from re-offending when there is no impetus to keep proper records, and nobody checking. When I registered my dog at DoA there was much confusion and delay, it was as if nobody had ever done it before, and maybe nobody had. They wrote my name in a duotang folder, took my word on what kind of dog mine was, without any inspection or vet verification, and gave me a tag. It was free. How does one renew a free honour-system tag annually, written on a page of some ledger nobody reads? Completely useless.
Seems that way…
Is that why the warship and helicopters are here? To enforce the crackdown on dog poop?
Well, that would at least be something. Honestly, any measured results/success in the community policing column is an improvement over the ambient disinterest. So much money is flying out the door for so little compliance and order. I’d be okay with the helicopter(s) using their fancy FLIR thermal cameras and dispatch platform to make ANY arrest or fine – it would at least be a good training exercise to help offset the colossal recurring expense and opportunity cost of our small NATO-member-sized budget.
Have seen the navy heli’s overhead once in the past week. What exactly are they doing out there, bobbing up and down 20 miles offshore?
My dog and I refuse to use single use plastic bags.
Amen,
What is the nonsense of putting poop in a bag then leaving that plastic bag full of poop on the side of the road, pathway, beach, sidewalk?
Why leave the plastic bag? Where did this idea come from?
Put it in a sock then and wash it after. The law doesn’t say you have to use a plastic bag.
Use a leaf!
Then don’t use plastic. Use a paper bag or carry it home in your hands.
Well put it in your pocket.
Many dog waste bags are made from fully biodegradable vegetable fibers. The bags are compostable, but the poo is not. It’s biohazardous waste and needs to be disposed of properly into plastic, or you can take it home and flush it. If you’ve been too lazy or cheap to investigate this yourself, you probably shouldn’t have a dog license….and I doubt you even have one of those!
Chill out Karen!
More like get a clue Zoomer.
Boy you sure talk a lot of crap! Dog poop, Iguana poop and any other animal poop naturally degrades you fool.
It sure does, but pet waste doesn’t just decompose and go away. It adds harmful pathogens, eggs, and nutrients to soil and water when not disposed of properly, and contaminates that area for years. Google it.
Yes it does, google it yourself and perhaps check articles you read for credibility. Google searches, it doesn’t authenticate. You may be surprised to learn that a dog pooping is an act of nature as with every other animal. Perhaps we shouldn’t swim in the sea with all those fish pooping in it?
With no dedicated dog poop collection centers all these bags do is go to the landfill with their own little pocket of methane gas ready for the bomb to go off at some point. Now, I am not saying dog owners should let their dogs poop in public places, but in all honesty a crap is the bush is more preferable than contributing to a methane stockpile.
Put in your pocket and save it for a rainy day.
Very few dog owners in the Cayman Islands are aware of the contents and obligations under the Animals Law 2015, let alone follow the rules prescribed – least of all it seems, the professed dog rescuers who take on high-energy rescue dogs they can’t manage on a lead in public places. Some of these folks would be getting over $10,000 in fines a day if there were anyone following them around willing to write the tickets.
Here are some:
§24 Unlicensed/untagged dog fine = $500, and dog license must be renewed EVERY year per §25.2.
§26 Every person keeping a dog shall ensure that such dog while in any highway or other public place is on a lead and is wearing a collar with an identification tag bearing licence number attached thereto.
§39 Concerns the civil liability of the owner – “it shall not be necessary for the party seeking such damages to show a previous mischievous propensity in the dog, or the owner’s knowledge of such propensity or that the injury was attributable to neglect on the part of such owner”
§42 (b) All dogs in public must be on a lead AND held by someone not less than 16 years old.
§43 Failing to pick up fouling = $2000 fine
§70 (6)(b) Poisoning animals is $4000 and one year in jail. Maybe we need a bigger deterrent?!?
Little Cayman residents in particular will be baffled to read that there are no specific references to feline cats, as they pertain to domestic animals – no nuisance provisions, no licensing, tagging, or owner obligations, anywhere in the Animals Law. That should probably be changed.
Regulation of nuisance livestock, like feral chickens, are also conspicuously absent.
Animals Law 2015 Revision:
https://cnslibrary.com/wp-content/uploads/Animals-Law-2015-Revision.pdf
Just more laws and rules that are not enforced on this Island
under the towns and country law it is an offence to take a dog on the beach
The Towns and Communities Law (1995) is another festering time machine read. Lots in there that nobody cares about. Mad dog fine was $30. Drunk, fouling in the street, $18. There’s archaic unenforced references to noise, fireworks/cannon blasts and other stuff nobody cares about anymore. Nothing about prohibiting dogs on beaches that I can see.
Here’s a link to the photostat:
http://www.deh.gov.ky/portal/pls/portal/docs/1/10168143.PDF
Jesus, that is a heck of a read!
Town and Country is a magazine. Dogs must be on a leash if they are outside the home, and that includes anywhere. Where is the article of law about beaches?
Obviously, these laws only apply to expats. Many Caymanians let their dogs roam around without a leash, pooping anywhere they wish. There’s no way any Caymanian is paying a $2,000 fine for their dog popping and it not getting cleaned up.
Ship your dogs poop to your home country then. It is wwvery insulting to say that this rule does not apply to Caymanians. Considering the vast number of work permits and permanent residencies on the Cayman Islands, that sure adds up to a hell of a lot of dog poop (and not every expat picks it up either).
Before the Covid pandemic it has been reported that the population stood at 70,000. with 35,000 permits. I am NOT saying that Caymanians should be allowed to let their dogs run riot and poop all over without picking it up. However that said please don’t insult the very people from the Island that many CHOSE to live on.
Believe me I did not post this for likes or dislikes, I could give a rats ass.
Another”feel good” campaign. How about hire a few unemployed Caymanians to pick up after the dogs so it can be turned into fertilizer.
Nearly two decades ago, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) classified pet waste as a dangerous pollutant in the same category as toxic chemicals and oil.
One gram of dog poop can contain 23 million fecal coliform bacteria, which are known to cause cramps, diarrhea, intestinal illness, and serious kidney disorders in humans.
The EPA estimates that two or three days worth of waste from a population of about 100 dogs would contribute enough bacteria to temporarily close a bay and all watershed areas within 20 miles of it to swimming and shellfishing.
Dog poop is NOT good fertilizer. It’s toxic to your lawn and other organic matter in your yard. The high nutrient (nitrogen) concentration in dog poop will burn and discolor the grass, creating “hot spots”. This is mainly due to dogs’ high protein diets.
The U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirms pet waste can spread parasites including hookworms, ringworms, tapeworms, Salmonella and several other dangerous viruses and bacteria. When infected dog poop comes into contact with your lawn, the poop will eventually “disappear”, but the parasite eggs can linger for years. When humans or animals come into contact with that soil through everyday activities like walking barefoot, playing or gardening, they risk infection from those eggs — even years after the poop is gone.
Dog poop often contains roundworm larvae, which may cause blindness. If a human ingests a roundworm larva, it can migrate through the body causing disease to the brain, lungs, kidneys, liver, heart and/or eyes.
Parents, think of your little ones playing in the yard! Put shoes on and wash hands!
And yet cats can roam freely and crap anywhere. Cat crap is more of a problem in my neighbourhood.
Cats bury and hide it so who cares
Not the cats in our neighbourhood. Dead song birds, lizards and puke too. Plus they sleep on our cars.
Who is the CAVO? Where have they been hiding for the last 20 years?