In typical German fashion, the town of Volkach is being exceptionally well organised when it comes to the town’s canine inhabitants. Officials in the town are set to commence DNA testing all of the dogs so that they can track which animals are guilty of fouling the streets, or more accurately, which dog owners are guilty of not cleaning up after their dogs.

There are 420 registered dogs in the small German town, and they are all to be tested with either saliva or fur samples, to be added to the database.

The mayor of Volkach, Peter Kornell, stated:

Unfortunately, we have to do it voluntarily because there is nothing in the (more…)

United Utilities has banned dogs and dog walkers from walking around the Clowbridge Reservoir, in Burnley, from February 20th this year. United Utilities say that they have made repeated requests for dog owners to use the dog waste bins provided, but due to a lack of cooperation from dog owners, they have no option but to ban dog owners from the reservoir.

Dog walkers have understandably reacted angrily to the ban, particularly following recent changes meaning that car owners were charged for parking at the reservoir.

Dog owner Suzy Hardman said of the ban:

It’s ridiculous, these kind of places are very popular with people.

Where are they going to go?

Rambler John Harvey takes the other side of story, agreeing that the dog fouling (more…)

Earlier this week saw over 1,000 sled dogs gather together for a sled dog race at Aviemore. The dogs will be competing in a race this weekend, called the Highland rally. The race is held every year and is regularly watched by over 3,000 people, bringing as much as £400,000 in revenue for the area.

The sled dog race is for dog teams of between 2 and 8 dogs, and they achieve speeds of 20mph. The dog handlers cover a wide age range, from as young as 8 years old to as old as 60.

When the race was first held back in 1984, just 12 teams took part. This weekend over 250 teams are expected to race their dogs. One of the most common dogs participating in the race is the Siberian Huskey.

Sarah Robinson, part of the organisation team, stated:

If we have ideal conditions there will be plenty of snow for teams to pull their driver – called the musher – around the course on a sled. If not, the musher will use a three-wheeled rig that looks a bit like a tricycle without a seat. Both dogs and musher have to be (more…)