A Burnham-On-Sea dog owner has urged fellow pet owners to be more responsible and halt beach fouling after she cleaned up large amounts of dog mess on Sunday.
Sue Lowe, pictured, collected 10kg of dog waste and rubbish along Burnham-On-Sea beach amid new concerns about the issue of dog fouling.
“Some days it makes you embarrassed to be a dog owner,” she told Burnham-On-Sea.com.
“It’s been pretty bad recently – some dog owners just don’t seem to care if their animals foul the beach. Some even leave the poo bags for others to clear away.”
“I come out most days to walk our dog and bring along a big bag to clean the beach, but it’s a shame it has to be done. It’s our own only complaint with living here.”
Her community-spirited action comes in the week that a Burnham-On-Sea mother spoke out on social media about her disgust at finding the town’s beach littered with dog poo while walking with her children on Sunday.
Toni Saunders posted a number of images on social media showing dog mess and poo bags along the town’s beach.
She said: “As I walk along the beach towards the nine-legged lighthouse all we see is poo, lots and lots of it. Why do people not pick it up?”
She says she found 17 dog poos and bags in the space of a ten minute walk. She’s urged dog owners to take more care in ensuring their pets don’t make a mess, adding: “Pick up your mess or keep your dog at home,” she said.
Burnham-On-Sea and Highbridge Town Council spends £24,000 a year providing dog poo bins in the towns, including several on the town’s seafront and along paths used by dog walkers.
Sedgemoor District Council’s dog warden can hand out fines to dog owners who allow their pets to foul public areas.
And last year, 24 dog owners on Burnham-On-Sea beach were fined for walking their pets on the ‘family-friendly beach’ between the jetty and Pavilion. They received £75 fines.
