DOG walkers may face fines if they fail to pick up their pets’ poop in future, a council warned.
And pet owners who let their animals out for a run unattended could also find themselves paying a financial penalty.
The Capital Trustees Board wants to make villagers and residents legally accountable for their domestic animals if they allow them to cause a menace in the community.
Having dogs in the home was traditionally frowned upon but board chairman Salah Tarrada told the GDN the move aimed to close loopholes in current legislation as dog walking becomes more fashionable.
“These two issues related to animals were also related to the public becoming more accountable,” said Mr Tarrada.
“There are laws governing general topics but with some loopholes. We need to be specific.
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“Two incidents highlighted to the council have been referred to the financial and legal services committee to come up with specific clauses to be added to the relevant article.
“The first is the accountability of dog walkers – a common sight in residential neighbourhoods nowadays.
“The culture is becoming popular and we are seeing an increase in dog walkers.
“Some of them fail to understand that is not fair to dirty the place and they need to clean up the mess their pets create on public lawns, pavements and walkways.”
He acknowledged that some conscientious owners carry poop scoops and plastic bags and clean up after their dogs but many do not act so responsibility.
“There is no legal binding, hence some take advantage of the current situation,” he explained.
“This is a time when keeping our surrounds clean is of paramount importance which is why people are charged for spitting in public.
“We agreed that there should be a clause to hold dog-owning offenders responsible too, with specific penalty recommendations.”
The council had received complaints, mainly from villages, on the second issue of domestic animals being let loose to run around.
In the latest incident, a video of a woman being bitten by a dog as she went to cross a road in Manama last week circulated on social media.
There is already a well-documented issue of stray packs of dogs roaming wildly in Bahrain. The GDN reported in June that a resident was attacked in Ras Ruman after returning from work.
Indian Sheeja Joseph was reportedly the third person in a week to have fallen victim. The 54-year-old told the GDN that she plans to file a human rights petition in order to call for action against the phenomenon of stray dogs roaming residential neighbourhoods, after she failed to find a government entity to register her plea.
raji@gdn.com.bh
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