Dog owners should be responsible for the actions of their pet

Having read about the dog fouling problem on Tyrella beach (’Councillor cries foul at dog dirt left on beach,’ Aug 11), and the irresponsible actions of some dog owners, I believe this is only the tip of the iceberg.

Is it any wonder that many people want to ban dogs from some public places?

I take my grandson for walks to a local forest and one day we had to turn around because of the dog faeces left on the path. My grandson loves to walk among the trees in the forest.

The other day we heard people coming so we waited for them to pass. Two of their three large dogs came running towards us, but I was glad I had reins on my two-year-old grandson as I was able to lift him.

The owner said they would not touch us as one circled us. This may be so, but for a two-year-old child you cannot take chances with them hurting him and also frightening him.

This is the second time this has happened in the forest as one other day a dog with its owner far behind came towards us. The owner finally caught up and called it away.

There are some dog owners who give others a bad name. The time has come for action to make owners take responsibility for their dogs’ actions.

Some even leave their poo bags hanging on trees! Great to see Glens and Causeway council taking action against such people and the litter louts that blight our environment.

Just want to finish by thanking those volunteers who pick litter and clean up our roadsides.

With grass cutting going on at the side of the roads, it surely highlights the amount of litter that is mostly thrown from cars.

John Mulholland, Doagh

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