Dog wardens
Dog wardens deal with complaints from members of the public about dog fouling, stray dogs and dangerous dogs. The wardens will investigate all complaints and take legal action where possible. The wardens carry out patrols of parks and open spaces and specific areas known to be used by walkers.
Dog wardens can give you advice on responsible dog ownership, including routine health care such as worming, de-fleaing, vaccinating your dog, neutering and microchipping, If they cannot help you they will put you in touch with someone who can.
Dog fouling
It is against the law for dog owners not to clean up after their dogs.
Dog wardens, enforcement officers, Police community support officers and street wardens enforce this law by encouraging people to clean up after their dog when it fouls in a public place.
Fixed penalty notices (fines of £75) are issued to people who fail to clean up after a dog in their charge. Persistent offenders are prosecuted through the courts. If they are found guilty, they can be fined up to £1,000.
To help dog owners be responsible about cleaning up after their dogs our parks and countryside service provide special dog litter bins in the major city and community parks in Leeds.
Stray dogs
An unattended dog in a public place is a stray dog. Stray dogs are not only a danger to themselves but can be a risk or cause nuisance to members of the public. The wardens collect stray dogs on a daily basis and take them to the kennels. The wardens try to find owners and re-unite dog and owner as soon as possible.
It is an offence for a pet dog to be in a public place without a collar and tag with the owners name and address on it - this includes when a person is in charge of the dog. If your dog does not have a collar and tag you can be prosecuted and a fined up to £5,000. If the dog has an identity tag it allows the dog warden to find the owner immediately, causing less worry for the owner and less stress for the dog.
We keep records of lost and found dogs, and we will collect found dogs from members of the public.
How to contact us
about a stray dog
Our service is available Monday - Thursday 08:00 - 17:00 and Friday 08:00 - 16:30. From 6th April 2008 the council will also take over responsibility for stray dogs from West Yorkshire Police (out of hours). Outside the normal dog warden service hours (above) you should contact 01484 426407 or 01924 863037 to arrange to take a stray dog to the council's acceptance point. Please note these numbers will only accept queries relating to a stray dog that needs to be handed in, out of hours. All other dog queries should be sent to the service in the usual way. Please do not take a stray dog to your local police station as they will not take it in. The council will not collect stray dogs out of hours.
The Police will retain the responsibility for dealing with dangerous dogs.
You can also contact us by ringing 0845 124 0113 Monday to Friday between 08:00 - 18:00. Please be aware that Monday morning is the busiest time. Alternatively you can email us by using the email link on this page.
Dangerous dogs
It is an offence to allow a dog in your charge to behave in an aggressive manner. A dog does not have to bite someone to be deemed dangerous. If you are convicted you can receive a fine of up to £5,000 and/or six months in prison.
The police also have a duty to deal with dangerous dogs.
Lost and found dogs
We keep records of lost and found dogs. We will collect found dogs from members of the public. If a dog is lost or found it should be reported to the dog warden service and to the nearest Police station. This is a legal requirement.