Pedal power for pet control

COUNCIL officers could soon conduct bicycle patrols on off road bike tracks to fine dog owners who take their animals off-leash in prohibited zones.
That’s the will of Cleeland Ward councillor Paul Donovan, who will put forward a notice of motion at the 13 October council meeting, to crack down on dangerous dogs being off-leash.
Cr Donovan, an avid bike rider, said the Dandenong Creek trail was littered with too many off-leash dogs, and not enough council officers.
“Why is it that during the hundreds of times I have ridden my bike along the Dandenong Creek trail, I have never seen a council bylaws officer present to enforce the laws we have relating to motorcycle use and pet management in passive recreation areas?,” he wrote in an email to council CEO John Bennie.
“Yet almost every single time – and I find this extraordinary – I have seen an individual with a dog off the leash, quite often a large and potentially dangerous dog.”
Cr Donovan will propose that the council purchase two mountain bikes to patrol off road bike paths over a six month trial period to fine rogue pet owners.
“Council has bent over backwards to support dog owners in this municipality,” he said.