New laws will clamp down on owners of dangerous dogs in Nantwich

Tough new laws are to be imposed in Nantwich to help prevent violent dog attacks.

Cheshire East Council is to use new legal powers available to police and local councils from today (October 20).

For the first time, they will be able to demand owners take action to prevent a dog attack or risk a fine of up to £20,000.

There are thousands of dog attacks reported every year in the UK.

And in Nantwich, both the RSPCA and police have received complaints about dogs attacking wildlife around Nantwich Lake and Mill Island.

Now, if a complaint has been made about a dog to the council or police, its owners could be ordered to:

Attend dog training classes
Muzzle the dog or require it to be on a lead in public
Require the dog to be microchipped and/or neutered
Repair fencing to prevent the dog leaving the property

The Dealing with Irresponsible Dog Ownership: Practitioner’s Manual guides police and local authorities in the use of new legal powers.

Cllr Les Gilbert, Cheshire East Council Cabinet member for localism and enforcement, said: “We will act swiftly and robustly to protect the public from dangerous dogs and bring offenders to book.

“Dog attacks are devastating for victims and their families, which is why we will act to take tough action against those who allow them to happen.

“Police and the council now have more powers to demand that irresponsible dog owners take steps to prevent attacks before they happen.

“This is on top of tougher prison sentences introduced by the Government for owners who allow their dogs to attack people or ‘assistance’ dogs.

“Prevention is always better than cure but that depends on information/intelligence from the public to alert us to any potential situation.”

Earlier this year, legal changes were made to enable prosecution for a dog attack on private property and maximum prison sentences were extended to:

14 years, from two years, for a fatal dog attack
Five years, from two years, for injury
Three years for an attack on an assistance dog

(picture under creative commons licence by Tatiana Sapateiro)