Dog owners warned to be wary of sitters

Dog owners are urged to be vigilant when choosing a 
sitter after a series of incidents involving irresponsible professional dog walkers in East Dunbartonshire.

According to Forestry and Land Scotland, some professional sitters walk too many dogs – up to 15 dogs at the one time – and 
cannot control them, or clean up after them,.

Since July there have been three incidents where dogs have escaped from group walks and behaved aggressively, and in November two fixed penalty notices for dog fouling were issued at Lennox Forest.

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Paige Klinkman, Area Visitor Services Manager at Forestry and Land Scotland, said: “Unfortunately an increasing number of incidents are being reported to us from the Lennox Forest area relating to irresponsible dog walking. This includes reports of some professional dog walkers taking out up to 15 or 16 dogs at a time, when The Dogs Trust recommend no more than four dogs per walker.

“We would urge owners looking to make use of dog walking services to ask the individual how many dogs they walk at one time, how they transport the animals and whether or not they have emergency procedures in place should dogs in their care get lost or injured.

“These three questions will enable owners to determine if their dog will be safe and well.”