Less than 10 dog fouling fines issued in Limerick in a year

THE NUMBER of dog fouling fines issued in the last year has been revealed, with a small number in Limerick.

The most recent data, gathered by National Council for Blind Ireland (NCBI), shows that 82 dog fouling fines were handed out in the country, in total, over the course of 2022.

To give comparison, 788 ‘inappropriate parking’ fines were issued last year in Limerick, while only five dog fouling fines were issued in the county in 2022.

As part of NCBI’s Clear Our Paths campaign, the data collected showed that some 17 counties didn't issue any dog fouling fines.

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A recent survey by NCBI also found that visually impaired people said dog fouling was the third most frequent, unexpected obstacle that they regularly encountered.

Explaining why dog fouling can be dangerous for those who are visually impaired, Aaron Mullaniff, Chief Services Officer with NCBI, went on to say that: “The dog fouling data shows that councils can’t be expected to police the issue alone.

"It’s impractical to think that wardens could observe every dog owner who doesn’t clean up after their dog and issue them with a fine. There needs to be significant effort from the public to clean up after their pets - it’s imperative that we all work to make our footpaths usable for all members in our communities.”