Arrowtown residents cry foul over defecating dogs

An Arrowtown resident is fed up with dogs wandering the streets off their leads and defecating on his lawn.

Paul Anderson said after four years of living in Arrowtown he had seen no improvement in the number of dogs wandering the streets off leads and dropping their "business" everywhere.

"It's dogs that use our lawn as a toilet."

He said his wife was sick of getting her hands covered in faeces when gardening.

Mr Anderson said he was not anti-dog, but complained some dogs were never on a lead and just left to wander. Even when dogs were walking with their owners, they sometimes walked into his and others' properties at will.

There was a core group of regular offenders, he said.

The Arrowtown Village Association had written to the Queenstown Lakes District Council about the problem, calling for better control of the 236 dogs registered in Arrowtown.

AVA chairman Richard Newman agreed it was a problem and had been for 30 years.

"It's ongoing, but council doesn't seem to want to do anything about it."

Some locals flaunted the rules, which were not policed well enough, he said.

"It's not a dog problem, it's an owner problem."

Arrowtown postie Ross Campbell, who delivered the mail by motorbike, agreed some dogs regularly roamed and others got in front of his bike and snarled at him, but generally it was not a serious problem.

However, he knew of some "big names" who regularly walked their dogs through the centre of the town where it was clearly sign-posted dogs were not allowed.

Lakes Environmental animal control officer Mathew Ormond said he did not have huge numbers of complaints about Arrowtown dogs, although he was aware some were known to wander. If caught, they were impounded.

He had warned locals who flaunted the rules they could be fined $300 for walking their dog in the main street.

Mr Ormond tried to visit the town twice a week, on Fridays and Mondays.

"Monday is rubbish day and if you see a dog out wandering, it's generally on a Monday when the bags are out."

In his experience, dogs generally roamed after escaping, rather than being deliberately left to run free.

Those caught and impounded cost the owner $100 the first time, $160 a second time and $240 for a third visit.

After that, owners were given a talk on how to manage their pets.

But not everyone listened, he said.

After 15 years in the job, he had heard every excuse about wandering dogs but generally found the pound fee was the only effective deterrent.

"Sometimes I'd like to put the owner in the pound for a couple of nights, but the trouble is no-one would come and collect them."

Lakes Environmental compliance manager Tim Francis said the bylaws prohibited dogs, even on leads, in Arrowtown's main street and that dogs had to be on a lead at all times in residential areas. The only areas where dogs could be let off the lead was on reserves and QLDC walking tracks, but they still had to be under control.

He was aware of some issues in Arrowtown but did not regard it as "black spot". There was more conflict between dogs and users on walking tracks in the district, prompting a possible review of council policy.

Walkers and runners had complained about cyclists riding with their dogs on Tobins and Frankton tracks and he was looking for feedback on the issue. If the bylaws were amended, the only places left for owners to exercise their dogs off the lead would be outside the urban areas. They could use the Arrow River area and Shotover Delta.

"We don't get a lot of complaints about dogs down there."

However, Arrowtown councillor John Wilson, who walks his dog Rosie regularly, said a major benefit of owning a dog was the incentive to get out walking.

"They've got to have somewhere to exercise and preferably without having to get in the car and drive somewhere."

Dog ownership came down to individual responsibility, he said. The bylaws had been overhauled in 2006 to put the onus on owners.