Barking dogs are driving some Cromwell residents barking mad, Central Otago District councillors were told yesterday.
Council planning and environment manager Louise van der Voort told councillors at the meeting in Alexandra that there had been an upsurge in complaints from Cromwell residents about noisy dogs.
The issue of barking dogs was "particularly sensitive, especially for neighbours", Ms van der Voort said.
Neighbours sometimes reacted badly when informed by council enforcement officers that a dog's barking "was in fact quite normal".
However, "over the top" barking dogs and their owners presented problems for the council's enforcement officers, Ms van der Voort.
"There is often a lot of education needed for dog owners to resolve the matter," she said. Exercise and not leaving the animal alone were top on a list of helpful advice for dog owners.
It was not uncommon for complaints about noisy dogs to end up on the mayor's desk, she said.
