Dog Warden Service - dog straying

 

DOG STRAYING

Stray dogs can cause problems as they:

  • may cause injury to themselves
  • may act aggressively towards members of the public
  • may cause road accidents
  • may worry livestock
  • add to fouling problem

The law defines a stray as a dog which is in a public place and not under the charge of a keeper. An authorised officer has the right to uplift any animal he suspects is a stray under the Environmental Protection Act 1990.


What you should do if you find a stray dog?


If you see a stray dog you should contact the Dog Warden at Environmental Health (Monday ? Friday 8am to 4pm). Outwith these hours contact your local police station (new window). Please note that occasionally due to holidays, leave, or other work, a Dog Warden may not be available, in which case you should contact Lothian and Borders Police.                   If you feel comfortable and the dog is friendly try putting the dog into a secure area. This will prevent the dog causing, or being involved in a road accident until the officer arrives to collect the dog. Never risk being bitten.

My dog has been uplifted ? how can I claim it back?

By law, stray dogs which have been taken to the kennels must be available for owners to reclaim for 7 days. After this time the dog becomes the property of the Edinburgh Dog and Cat Home. The charge for allowing your dog to stray is £25 plus £ 12.00 per day kennelling. This amount is payable at the time you collect the dog.

Under certain circumstances, your dog may be returned directly to you by the Dog Warden. In these cases, dog owners are liable to pay the £25 fee, which will be sent as an invoice to your address.

The Edinburgh Dog & Cat Home holds all strays picked up by the Dog Warden or the police in West Lothian. It can be contacted at:

Edinburgh Dog and Cat Home
26, Seafield Road East
Edinburgh
Midlothian
EH15 1EH
Tel: 0131 669 5331
http://www.edch.org.uk/ (new window)

In order to prevent fraudulent claims, dogs will only be handed over to owners with proof of identification such as drivers license, passport, or credit card.
You can rehome stray dogs from the dog and cat home these are dogs which have not been claimed by their owners within the 7 days. 


I have lost my dog, how can I find it?


Contact the Dog Warden on 01506 282500 to see if your dog has been uplifted. Your details will be recorded so that if we receive reports of a stray dog matching your dogs description we can contact you. This will allow the dog to be reunited quicker.

Contact the local police station and report your lost dog to them, as police officers can also uplift stray dogs.

Contact Edinburgh Dog and Cat Home. All dogs uplifted in West Lothian go there so by registering your details they too can contact you if your dog is handed in.

If you do find your dog, please inform any service you have reported it missing to.

Updated: 01/12/11

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