Campaign to clear our parks of dog poo

7:26am Friday 9th May 2008

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A NEW hard-hitting campaign featuring an amateur rugby player with a diseased eye caused by faeces is targeting dog owners.

Warrington Borough Council has launched the Toxacara campaign to raise the awareness of the dangers of dog fouling.

The rugby player contracted the Toxacara virus when he rubbed his eye after falling in dog faeces that had been left on the playing fields used by his club.

Toxocara is a serious infection transported to the eye via the retinal artery potentially causing blindness through the growth of non-malignant tumours or the development of detached retinas.

It is contracted by accidentally swallowing either infected dog faeces or soil or contact with dog faeces in the eyes.

It can also result in fever, cough, wheezing, reduced appetite, itchy swollen red bumps or patches on the skin, abdominal pain and headaches.

The campaign follows the borough council's recent introduction of new powers to the environmental enforcement team, allowing them to issue £50 fixed penalty notices for dog fouling offences.

If people do not make the payments within 14 days, a maxiumum fine of £1,000 could be enforced.

There are more than 1,000 litter bins across the town which can be used to dispose of dog foul and the borough council has designated land where it is an offence for dog owners not to clean up after their pet.

This applies to all land in the town open to the air and where the general public have legal access.

Dog fouling problems can be reported to Warrington Borough Council Customer Care on 443000.