A cyclist who thought he was being throttled by an extendable dog lead has urged pet owners to be aware of the dangers of shared use paths.
The anonymous cyclist in Deal, Kent, said that he was knocked off his bike and a thin leash garotted him when he was riding along Sandwich Quay at lunchtime on Friday last week.
He grazed his body and ruined his cycling tights.
He told Kent Online: “It was ridiculously long and really thin. I was just riding along minding my own business and, then, wallop!
“Someone did come to help me but the man who was holding the lead walked away. No apology or anything.
“If I’d been travelling any faster it could have been lethal.”
He has pointed out that not only can extendable leads catch on cyclists’ bodies, they can also get caught in bicycles and has asked users of shared paths to be more considerate.
Gary Holmes, vice-chairman of Deal Tri, said: “Whilst riding in mixed environments cyclists should always be vigilant, but I share this man’s concerns about dogs and extendable leads and appeal to owners to be aware of the risks to other cycle path users.”
Back in 2010 we reported a horrific incident involving a boy in Lancashire.
The child, 6-year-old Isaac Hargreaves from Morecambe, was riding close to his home in a cul-de-sac when he pedalled into the lead which was extended to such an extent that the dog was on one side of the road and the owner on the other.
Isaac was caught by the lead at upper chest height, causing a severe friction burn to his shoulder and neck before he fell off the bike, bruising his back
Lancaster City Council, which also covers the Morecambe area, has released a picture of the neck injury to illustrate the dangers of extendable leads. The boy’s father, Darren, also talked to them about the incident which happened during the summer.
"I have always regarded our small, quiet cul-de-sac to be a safe place for children to play," he said "Isaac loves to ride circuits of the road with his brother which is why I thought it was unusual to hear him crying that day. I ran out to find him walking towards me from where the incident had occurred, just metres from my house, with terrible burn marks on his chest and neck.
"Isaac had cycled round a bend in the road and straight into an extendable dog lead. The owner of the dog was on one side of the road and the dog was on the other when the accident happened. The lead appeared to have caught Isaac's shoulder and moved up to his neck as he fell backwards.
"If he hadn’t been wearing his helmet which had cracked on impact, his injuries could have been far worse. Thankfully, Isaac has fully recovered but as a parent, it saddens me to think my beautiful little boy will have to bear the physical scars for the rest of his life."
69 thoughts on “Cyclist asks for consideration on shared use paths after garotting with extendable dog lead”
They should be banned, not
They should be banned, not only dangerous for other people but for the users and animal as well, any dog trainer I have spoken to is quite vocally against them as you have no control over the animal. And one even fears they can kill a small dog if let go.
I’m sorry, but not a pet
I’m sorry, but not a pet lover and a hater of pet owners who don’t take responsibility for themselves and their pets!
Lucky it was not me with the neck injury, the guy would not have walked away without saying nothing, I would have made sure of that.
Just goes to show we have to be ready for anything these days, as most of those who are not riding a bike seem to be walking around in a Zombi state with no care to what else is happening around them!
If i had been that cyclist
If i had been that cyclist that fall would have needed to knock me unconcious before i would have allowed that dog owner in question to walk away without an apology. Dogs have been in my family since i was a toddler. in that time i never saw the need for an expandable lead. my wife bought one for An unknown reason a couple of years ago. it ended up in the bin straight away. most people that i encounter with fhose leads when walking my dog or cycling are unaware of their environment and retract their dogs far too late. Maybe they should spent a bit of time training themselves anf their dogs instead of blocking bridle ways.
Simple question – how has an
Simple question – how has an extendable dog lead, which i assume was in the owners hand and attached to the dog caused an injury to someones neck ?
Was the dog some giant breed or the owner so tall that the lead, held in his hand was at a greater height. If your cycling along i would assume that the lead would first catch your handle bars or front wheel ?
I may well be wrong but it just doesn’t seem to sit right 😕
stumps wrote:Simple question
My thoughts exactly.
notfastenough wrote:stumps
My thoughts exactly.— stumps
My reaction also, but I have thought about it more and perhaps he was in/on a recumbent cycle. It would also mean that the cyclist is disadvantaged to survey the road ahead.
Dogs on leads and off leads are a liability. I give them the same, if not more space as children, as they are just as oblivious to the dangers around them. Just give them the due care and attention.
If the dog had been climbing
If the dog had been climbing up a bank at the side of the path it’s quite feasible.
stumps wrote:Simple question
Quite easily, if the dog has gone up or down a bank and is at a different level to the owner or if the owner at the last minute has, without any malice, tried to avoid the cyclist by lifting the lead up and over the bike and rider and ended up yoinking the rider off. This second situation could also explain the owner walking off sans apology. If they’ve realised they’ve got it wrong and dropped a bit of a bollock they may have just felt embarrassed or had a panic and sheepishly got themselves off.
(However, it was Kent and they do like a bit of UKIP down there, so given that there is a lot of crossover between those type of people and the type of people that are anti-bike, it’s reasonably plausible that the dog owner was an aggressive knobber)
just goes to show you have to
just goes to show you have to keep your eyes peeled for everything. Dog walkers have plenty of other places to walk there dogs, other than cycle paths even if they are shared use.
Certainly a hazard. I cycle
Certainly a hazard. I cycle through Sutton Park fairly regularly and it is not unusual to come across a group of people chatting in the road whilst ignoring their dog leads stretching into the bushes. This is actually on a signposted cycle route.
Broadly speaking, if a dog needs to be on a lead, then it needs to be kept close. In my experience, dogs on leads cause far more problems than dogs off the lead.
Grizzerly wrote:Certainly a
Dog owners are generally oblivious to such things. I’ve experienced a dog barking and lashing out like crazy and its owner said, “Ohh yeahh, he doesn’t like bikes much…”
So why are you walking him along a very well-marked section of the National Cycle Network?! Fricking idiots.
Speaking as a dog owner (i am
Speaking as a dog owner (i am actually..) All dog owners to carry Id plates, and be taxed, insured and trained!
Like everything most owners are Ok, but a good number are just fricking oblivious. I often come across them with lead stretched like a washing line. Fave has to be the one with 2. Muttley 1 was in bushes at one side having a dump & Muttley 2 on the other side. Only clue in the half light was the guy’s arms being at 45′.
Thing is I have never seen sustrans guidance telling dog owners about their leads other than using one, but plenty of spouting about inconsiderate cyclists. I sometimes think the C in NCN stands for Canine, not cycle.
It’s not just limited to the paths, I have seen stupid dog owners be like that on roads as well. It’s not fair on the dog & they think they’re animal lovers
how bloody big was the dog?
how bloody big was the dog? or was the rider on one of those clown bikes?
I rode the Tour of Yam Yam
I rode the Tour of Yam Yam today many people with dogs and all of them considerate owners. As a dog owner echo above and you can do little about bloody idiots
I have wondered before
I have wondered before whether these could be challenged with the law as is.
Technically, a dog doesn’t have to be on a lead, but it must be “under control”. In the same way that leaving a child in control of a large dog has been established to fail the “under control” test, surely the same should be true in this case and others. If a dog is creating a hazard on a shared path, it’s obviously not under sufficient control.
Alternatively, can someone hit the owners, manufacturers or retailers selling these with an almighty civil damages case for injury.
As a dog walker and
As a dog walker and cyclist,
1 I urge cyclist to make themselves known before passing, knowing you are there in good time is best.
2 most dog walkers will look out for cyclists
3 remember shared use paths such as towpaths are hardly ideal cyclepaths. Caution is always needed.
stonechat wrote:As a dog
Despite the operative word being ‘shared’, I agree caution is needed. As a cyclist I generally avoid these kind of paths, mainly due to owners with accompanying dogs not on the lead, some people seemingly oblivious to a polite ‘coming passed’, and having to jet wash doggy-doo out of tyre treads when dogs owners haven’t necessarily cleaned up after their animals.
As a dog walker and
As a dog walker and cyclist,
1 I urge cyclist to make themselves known before passing, knowing you are there in good time is best.
2 most dog walkers will look out for cyclists
3 remember shared use paths such as towpaths are hardly ideal cyclepaths. Caution is always needed.
Used correctly there is
Used correctly there is nothing wrong with an extendable lead. I have a 15m horse’s lunge lead i use for my monster and never had a problem with a cyclist as i use it correctly.
The dog-owner in question was
The dog-owner in question was clearly anti-social, from his response. I’d like to add a few comments in defence of dogs though. It’s pretty common in discussions like this to see people advocating “dogs should never be allowed to run off the lead outside of private gardens” or, as here “dogs should never be on long leads”. I don’t class myself as a dog-lover, but my wife bought a dog, so I share responsibility for the dog and care for her welfare and well-being. When out on a walk, dogs love to sniff at all the scents along the verges – that’s how they experience the world (their sense of smell is hundreds of times better than ours), and long leads make it possible for them to get a little ahead of, or slightly behind their owner as they walk along. They are very practical, used sensibly. Equally, when in the fields and woods near our village, when away from livestock or small children, I let our dog off the lead for a run – just like a good fast ride is good for us cyclists, a run it’s clearly good for her and she loves it.
Life drained of all risk is impossible, impoverished (for dogs as well as people) and not a sensible thing to aim for. Yes, long-leads *can* be dangerous as above, and dogs can bite people or chase livestock, just as we cyclists *can* be a menace to others. Responsible owners try to be sensible when and where they use long leads or none. But please give a thought to dogs, and understand why they may be on long leads or running free, before calling for over-zealous restrictions on their freedoms.
We take our dogs out on
We take our dogs out on extendables. We watch what’s happening and reel them in when kids / other dogs / bikes / scooters etc come down the shared path
Not rocket science. Like most things, common sense needs to be applied, rather than hysterical banning orders.
Bigfoz wrote:We take our dogs
Except extending leads don’t have the strength to reel in dogs, long leads fine, extendable leads are dangerous and are considered so by every professional dog handler and trainer I have encountered. (There are even accounts of amputation of fingers.)
And as to licencing dogs, we have to in Northern Ireland, why not the rest of the UK?
Another thing that will be
Another thing that will be banned when im in charge!!! Possibly a recumbant cyclist?
Must have been the size of a
Must have been the size of a horse or a Great Dane.
If any dog owner had done this to me, they would have been strangled in return.
(duplicate post deleted,
(duplicate post deleted, sorry)
As a runner and a cyclist I
As a runner and a cyclist I hate those extendable leads. If your dog pulls on the lead when you walk them the solution is to learn how to control your pet and train them to walk to heel; not simply to give them more and more lead. It’s called a lead for a reason — you lead your dog around, you decide where to go.
often come across these long
often come across these long leads when out and about in fact much more often than see a dog on a traditional short lead; dog or dogs on one side of road, owner on the other side, lead stretched across road, and this is on actual roads, not paths or trails so they are sharing road with bikes, walkers, cars, motorbikes. Don’t understand why dogs can’t ‘experience their world’ on same side of road as their owner.
Worse in the fens: quite
Worse in the fens: quite regularly seen cars crawling along with long lead out of the window, dog trotting down other side of road.
One time then had torrent of abuse from same car 10 minutes later for “holding them up” on another road after they’d finished “walking” Rover.
gavben wrote:Worse in the
Hahaha, you’re kidding right?! #o Is that taking the dog for a ‘walk’ or a ‘drive’? No idea.
The hypocrisy from the ‘held up’ driver is of the levels that risk leaving me speechless – it’s the worst kind because then the knuckle-dragging ignoramus thinks they were right…
I’ma dog owner and a
I’ma dog owner and a cyclist.
Extendible leads are useless in terms of controlling dogs, since you can’t grip or use the thin and dangerous portion of the leash, and are only useful for owners who are terrified their dogs will run away if allowed off the leash.
If you don’t trust your dog, get it trained – an extendible leash is an admission you can’t trust your dog.
exilegareth wrote:I’ma dog
+1
Always concerned when I’m walking my dog and I see a dog on an extendable. Makes you think the dogs dangerous. Just train your dog and let him off the lead when it’s ok to do so.
exilegareth wrote:I’ma dog
+1
Always concerned when I’m walking my dog and I see a dog on an extendable. Makes you think the dogs dangerous. Just train your dog and let him off the lead when it’s ok to do so.
Like guns, retractable leads
Like guns, retractable leads aren’t dangerous until you put them in the wrong hands. They usually have a ratchet/lock on them so you can reel-in an unruly dog.
Although, I seem to recall reading in one of my employer’s study paper last week that on public paths, etc. dogs should/must be kept on a short lead, (which is upto 2m in length). I might have to have another look at the study paper when I’m in work tomorrow.
Without commenting on this
Without commenting on this particular case, it should be common sense never to jog or cycle between an owner and their dog. A dog’s natural response is to go towards the owner, so even if you don’t get caught in a lead you’re asking to cross paths with the dog.
As mentioned when in close
As mentioned when in close proximity to walkers, dogs, kids and wild animals beware of the unexpected. You can’t expect to carry the same speed if it’s busy. Ring your bell or shout
Easy answer is don’t use
Easy answer is don’t use shared cycle lanes to ride on. Stick to the road, most cycle paths/lanes and shared pavements are not fit for purpose.
NigelSign wrote:Easy answer
The places that have the greatest problem are Parks, and in London at least where cycling provision has been made it usually is fit for purpose. The same is also true of the good bits of Sustrans infrastructure such as the Bristol Bath route.
There’s nothing unreasonable about expecting people to keep their dogs under control on these routes. It’s in the highway code after all (rule #56).
I have heard second hand that in Clapham at least, the Police have warned some dog walkers around the cycle track through the common, which is naturally a busy route.
“Another case of why shared
“Another case of why shared use paths are not a solution for cycling. They are bad enough with just pedestrians but add dogs and they are terrible.”
Agree whole heartedly- but there again many roads in the UK are not fit for purpose either ~X(
Surely you’d see a person
Surely you’d see a person walking a dog in the distance and slow down that’s just common courtesy on a shared use path. We all just need to get along. Dog walkers should look out for cyclists and reign the dog in and hold it until the cyclist passes. Cyclists slow down and pass slowly and respectfully. There are far too many people who think they have a right to do what they want when they want at other people’s expense.
I ride my MTB on off-road bridleways and shared-use paths and always show mutual consideration if I come across somebody else, no matter what they are doing. Families, kids, dogs, other cyclists etc. When I see them approaching in the distance or if I approach them from behind, I knock the speed off (usually with an associated brake squeel which they hear) and pass them as slowly as need be. I also walk my dog on the same paths and bridleways and show cyclists the same courtesy, they almost always do the same. I’ll often say hello too, because we’re all just out enjoying the countryside aren’t we?
The way I see it, this person has either plowed through the section where he encountered somebody else at the same speed he was going on his own (which is inconsiderate and stupid), or there is more to the story- were they in fisty-cuffs and the bloke used the lead as a weapon?
As others have said above, it is a dog owner’s responsiblity to ensure that the lead doesn’t trip/garrot anybody else and they certainly shouldn’t allow them to be strung at head-height across a path, but if you ride your bike straight into an extended rope (which aren’t exactly hard to spot) then you get a Darwin award and a nice little scar. You also need to ask yourself the question of why you were going so fast that you didn’t see the person, the dog, or the lead. Self-preservation clearly doesn’t come naturally to some. If this person was riding along and there was a fire in the middle of the path would they have gone straight through it and then sold a sob-story to the press about the dangers of setting cyclists on fire?
I don’t condone the irresponsible lead-control, but this bloke sounds like a bit of a lemon and needs to accept it as a 50/50.
therealsmallboy wrote:Surely
I don’t agree. Those thin extensible leads are hard to spot, especially at night. Especially if the dog itself is way off the path somewhere. All you see is what appears to be a pedestrian off to one side (I do appreciate the trend for LEDs on dog collars, though, sometimes that little light off to one side is the only clue that there may be a lead strung across the path in front of you)
Would motorists tolerate a situation where thin steel cables were strung across roads at random points, and they’d have to stop and wait while they cable was wound in again before proceeding?
Mainly though its just another reason why shared-use paths are best avoided if possible. Though I’m not talking about ‘enjoying the countryside’ rather than actually going somewhere (I am told this ‘countryside’ thing exists out there somewhere – is it nice?).
Nasty injury and I hope for a
Nasty injury and I hope for a speedy recovery.
To be honest I find the a lot of dog owners irresponsible, be it Bruce getting his 300 yard walk of the day down the shared use path (which I stopped using because its covered in dog shit) or the more adventurous ones in the Lakes using poop bags and then dumping them in walls, dangling in hedges, behind or in trees and farmers fields anywhere but in a bin.
Host troll.
xx
Could the Duchess of
Could the Duchess of Cambridge’s uncle please help us find this example of pure evil?
On a lighter note, did he really say “I was just riding along”? #shitcyclistssay
Another case of why shared
Another case of why shared use paths are not a solution for cycling. They are bad enough with just pedestrians but add dogs and they are terrible.
triplettravel wrote:Another
So as an example, you would recommend that everyone should mix it with the traffic around Park Lane & Hyde Park Corner, rather than use the cycle track through Hyde Park?
I’m a dog owner and a cyclist
I’m a dog owner and a cyclist and, while I’ve never encountered the dangers reported here, I’ve never understood the sense of these long leads. How can you have any control of your dog when it’s 20′ away? If you have full control of your dog you wouldn’t need a 20′ lead. I use a 6′ leash and moderate length according to environment and risk. If it’s safe for the dog to be off lead then she’s off lead. There is no need for a 20′ lead when walking your dog. You’re the pack leader. You decide what the dog does and where it goes. Extending leads are just stupid, IMHO.
This nearly happened to my 4
This nearly happened to my 4 year old son who was running along – those leads should only be used when others not about.
I regularly use a shared use
I regularly use a shared use path at the side of the canal. There are often dog walkers with dogs on extendable leads or running free, and parents with small children.
I’ve found that if you slow down as you pass and don’t ride like a cock, they get their animals under control, and everything works.
Yes, there are some peds who are arsey about it, but I also see plenty of cyclists who fly past at stupid speeds. There are undoubtedly dicks in both camps….
I use a national cycle path
I use a national cycle path (99, Comber Greenway) in Northern Ireland for commuting everyday. It is used by dog walkers. Most keep their dogs on a short lead and under control. However, there are a small minority who, I reckon, intentionally let their dogs block my path by running loose. On Friday, I had to swerve and brake to avoid hitting a dog darting all over the path; the dog walker then hit me with his lead ! Words were exchanged, but it became clear he was not willing to share the path and provide a clear space to pass. This is the second assault in a year by a dog walker under similar circumstances. A video camera is now essential for my daily commute. I find long leads are marginally better, as the dog walker has no excuse for the dog blocking the path. As far as licensed dogs; the Belfast/Castlereagh dog warden is unwilling to control the dog owners or use the legislation available to reduce the accident hazard they are imposing. Cities throughout the UK seem to be trying to encourage cycling via Boris bikes and pseudo cycle paths, yet not putting in place safe infrastructure to cycle.
UPDATE – Monday morning 07:20 11/5/15 – same dog walker, dog loose again, still no lead and shrugs when asked why his dog is not on the lead. What is the solution to this irresponsible attitude ?
Exup wrote:
UPDATE – Monday
Dogs do not have to be on a lead unless it is in a area designated area for dogs to be on a lead.
The solution is for you to slow down and be prepared to stop until can confirm theat the dog is under control and it is safe to pass.
Exup wrote:What is the
Unfortunately unless the council have signs up requesting dogs to be kept on leads they only have to be ‘under control’ and for that to be demonstrated a quick recall is all that’s needed. There have been changes to the dog order in NI lately that make dog owners more accountable but unfortunately, according to my local enforcement officer (I work for Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council.), it’s just going to lead to a lot of ‘his word, your word’ scenarios.
Boot the dog if it comes
Boot the dog if it comes anywhere near you and lay out the dog walker if he touches you – itll all be on camera
Tattoojunkie30 wrote:
An eye for an eye will make the whole world blind – Gandhi
The birch
The birch
I walk two dogs but don’t
I walk two dogs but don’t need a lead of any type because I’ve trained them properly.
One whistle and they come to me a sit, they will do this when they see bikes, cars (or horses) coming on their own.
When they are on a lead, it’s a normal one. I exercise them where they can be off the lead and have a good run away from roads which is a mile walk from home. If you have a dog, you must be prepared to make the effort and take the time to look after them properly.
Basically if you have a dog, you should train it, and train yourself to have proper control around other dogs, people, bikes, cars and live stock etc.
Irresponsible dog owners are a problem, I’ve been chased and barked at while on my bike by out of control dogs more than once, its incompetent owners thats the problem
While generally on the side
While generally on the side of keeping dogs under control I have to say some of the “They wouldn’t need it if they trained their dog” stuff is ill-considered.
Not all dogs and not all breeds are the same. Some are very good at recall and others are not, even given a reasonable amount of training.
There are also perfectly good reasons why people use extendable or long leads. You may have a very well-trained, well-behaved dog but be in a place where dogs are forbidden from being off-lead. So the long lead is a way to let them run without breaking the rules. Perhaps the rules are to blame not the well-behaved dogs/owners – a situation cyclists should have some sympathy with.
None of that excuses or justifies letting them cross over paths where people are cycling, running etc.
But just as we don’t like having the sins of pavement-riding red-light-jumping people on bike-shaped-objects visited on us, don’t lump all dogs and owners together or assume the same solutions work in every situation.
I was attacked and bitten by
I was attacked and bitten by a dog on an extended lead a few months ago, so I’ll attest to the fact that extending leads give no control whatsoever over a dog in that situation.
I was cycling slowly up an off-road shared use path (up from Beverley Brook to Sunset Road on Wimbledon Common if you’re interested) and the dog and middle aged woman owner were walking down towards me. Dog raced towards me, and I stopped and put a foot down as it approached – it took the opportunity to nip my leg before the owner was able to bring it under some sort of control. I was surprised as it looked like a fairly normal labrador type dog and I was expecting it just to get in my way rather than actually attack.
I don’t have a dog, but I grew up in a house with dogs ranging over the years from well-trainable pedigrees to slightly nutty rescue dogs. For those occasions when you need the dog on the lead, it should be a short one so that you can control it, and when it’s off the lead it should be really off the lead, not attached to an extending cable. If the dog is never safe to be let off the lead, you should work on the training, or just resign yourself to being permanently closely attached to your dog.
Perhaps Sustrans and councils should put up ‘no extending dog lead’ signs on shared use cycle paths and wait for the deluge of outraged mail to come in 🙂
In some instances it’s
In some instances it’s primarily the dog owners that need training.
If the dog is not on a short
If the dog is not on a short lead it is in law not under control and the owner is liable for damage caused by the dog by default.
I had a problem with my dog once when a jack russell attacked it but came of much worse for wear. The owner posted signs up warning others of my dangerous dog! A quick chat with the local dog warden resulted in the removal of the signs and official ones going up pointing out the owner of the jack russell was completely to blame due to it not being on a lead and therefor not under control. My dog was on a short lead and under control when it was attacked.
Long story but if the dog is not on a lead, no matter how obedient or under control you think it is, it is not legally under control.
As for long leads; they have their place but that is only where there are no other people present. I use a long lead but it is locked at a couple of feet length when walking on paths and my dog walks to heal. I use the longer length if we are near livestock or other animals just in case. Mostly he is off the lead when we are walking through the countryside but only if there is no one about.
There’s no place for
There’s no place for extending dog leads on any sort of shared infrastructure. The roads are an example of shared, multi-modal infrastucture and it certainly wouldn’t be acceptable there. We need to see some rather higher standards for motor-free paths in this respect.
Matt eaton wrote:There’s no
Though one of the cases mentioned in the article _was_ on a road (if a cul-de-sac), with the dog-lead stretched from one pavement to the other. Would have been interesting had it been a motorcyclist or a HGV coming round the corner as opposed to a small child on a bike.
Frankly I don’t believe his
Frankly I don’t believe his story.
To get tangled round the neck it would have had to be above handlebar height at between the dog and owner ends. Quick experiment in my living room; even if I hold the lead at shoulder height (which is silly and unrealistic and I am 6’2″), and the far end is approximate labrador height there is no way that you can pass between me and the imaginary dog (regardless of distance to dog) on either a road or mountain bike without snagging some front end bike parts or actually hitting me.
Even if hitting the lead above handlebar height was possible, to do that sort of damage implies that the owner had to hold on and the dog had to stay still(-ish). At the sort of pace he had to be going to do that sort of damage to his neck even a big dog is going to be severely injured by being yanked off its feet, assuming the owner had managed to hold on.
nevermind.
nevermind.
I have seen extendable dog
I have seen extendable dog leads that are very long. If the dog is so far from the owner you could easily not see the lead, just the dog and the owner and not realise they are attached.
jazzdude wrote:I have seen
😕
I don’t think anyone is arguing that they he should’ve seen it, just that the height seems a little odd on a normal upright bike.
It could be that the owner
It could be that the owner was on a bank and so higher than the cyclist? Or as has been pointed out – maybe he tried to lift the lead over the cyclist and just made things worse.
I don’t know how anyone can
I don’t know how anyone can identify these reckless dog walkers? Perhaps they need some form of registration? Their dogs already have to be registered; how about the owners? A nice big plate front and back should be adequate. A licence, registration and the payment of some tax for dog walkers to access that shared path should sort out the hazards and any conflict between user groups.
And have you seen how many walkers fall on their noggins. Perhaps it should be compulsory to wear a helmet…
jestriding wrote:I don’t know
Perhaps they should have to be tested also?
To follow on from my earlier
To follow on from my earlier post and lots of discussion by others:-
Here are verbatim excerpts from the Castlereagh Dog Warden’s formal response following a complaint I made (April 14) about a gentlemen who had repeatedly not kept his large dog under control on a lead: “….. after reviewing the pictures and your statement, the dog appears to be within a few metres of the owner and this would be deemed under control”. The Dog Warden goes further: “Currently there is no legalisation in the Castlereagh Borough Council area that states dogs must be kept on a lead whilst in public. Some Councils have adapted legalisation under the Clean Neighbour and Environment Act(Northern Ireland) 2011, which means they can designate areas of the Council area as ‘Dog Control Orders’, this allows the Council to introduce legalisation for dogs to be kept on a lead. However, Caslereagh Borough Council have to date, decided against adapting this legalisation. ”
I was not too happy that the dog warden was not willing to take any action to reduce the risk of accidents to me and others. However, I replied with thanks as it would appear that he has just accepted legal liability for any accidents that I have due to this determination !
Oh and the gentlemen with the large dog assaulted me a month later !
Why has an article for 6
Why has an article for 6 years ago appeared???