Who uses a dog walker?
There are lots of families where their dog is a member of the family (Research by MINTEL, questioning around 1,000 pet owners found three quarters (74%) of owners treat their pets as one of the family) but where parents are working so use dog walkers. Many old folk – where their dog is their sole companion – are not able to exercise them.
Dog walkers don’t charge a lot for their services – between £10 and £14 per walk. That covers travel to and from and at least an hour with the dog. So they are earning below the minimum wage. They also provide essential pet sitting and boarding services. Some run puppy and dog behaviour classes.
Many professional dog walking businesses are run by women who find it hard to fit in other work with their family responsibilities. Professional dog walkers are trained and experienced in dog care and are insured.
London Borough of Richmond Upon Thames
Last month, the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames proved itself to be both anti-democratic and anti-dog. And you could add anti-small business and sexist. Some might also say incompetent in drafting regulations.
The Council has run THREE consultations about limiting the number of dogs that can be walked – whether by a professional dog walker or a dog owner - from six to four.
On all three occasions, the public indicated their resistance to the proposed regulation. Most recently, a petition was signed by 1,740 people and the Council received 1,363 emails and 228 letters opposing the proposed regulations.
At a July meeting of the cross-party regulatory committee it was revealed that the Council’s consultation exercise found 59% did not want the unnecessary regulation. But the Council ignored these views and agreed Public Spaces Protection Orders (PSPO) under the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014.
To add insult to injury the council officers recommended restricting the number of licences for dog owners and professional walkers to walk six rather than four dogs in the borough to 15. Yes, 15. And only to those people who were residents.
They propose a 12 month trial period – but the damage will be done by then to businesses and dog-owning families. At the meeting council officers admitted that they had no idea how many dog walking businesses were in the Borough.
Other London boroughs
Richmond isn’t the only council which appears to be anti-dog. The same restrictions have been attempted in other London boroughs. It could be argued that the London Borough of Lambeth has smaller open spaces so it needs to restrict the number of dogs walked at any one time but that certainly isn’t the case in London Borough of Hounslow and the London Borough of Wandsworth which are adjacent to Richmond.
What is going on? Why the unnecessary regulation? Are our local authorities becoming anti-dog? And how can they ignore public opinion? Why isn’t there more fuss in the media?
The number of dogs and dog walkers
Now. With some quick on-line research we can see the following:
• There are 8.5 million dogs in the UK – and in 2016 there were 18.9 million households. So that would indicate that almost half of households have a dog.
• In 2011 Richmond upon Thames had a population of 187,000 in 79,800 households. Let’s say half have dogs – that’s nearly 40,000 dogs.
• The Association of Professional Dog Walkers – a group set up by Lucy Bonnett when the Council started the consultations http://www.apdw.co.uk/ has over 100 members in the London Borough of Richmond
• The Professional Association of Dog Walkers - http://www.professionaldogwalkersassociation.co.uk/ - which argues that “The dog walking industry is currently one of the UK's fastest growing industries for new small business start ups” is another UK association for professional dog walkers established at the end of 2016 in Scotland. The number of members is undisclosed.
• A search for dog walkers in Whitton – the smallest of London Borough of Richmond’s towns – revealed 20 dog walking businesses. The same search for Twickenham showed 14, Richmond has 20 and there were six in Kew. And think of all those micro-businesses that are not using the Internet to promote their services.
• A news report in the Daily Mail’s This is Money column in 2015 indicated “Doggy day care sector is booming with owners spending £1.5bn a year on people to take their pet for walkies”.
I also discovered that there are just 34 licensed professional dog walkers in the Royal Parks https://www.royalparks.org.uk/managing-the-parks/licences-and-permits/professional-dog-walking-licences/licensed-professional-dog-walkers-in-the-royal-parks although there doesn’t appear to be a limit to licenses.
Problems with dogs and dog walkers
Public Space Protection Orders (PSPO) are supposed to be based on evidence. But when the Richmond Council officers were challenged they made anecdotal comments about complaints received about dog excrement.
Well, dog poo can be a problem. But there are general regulations about failing to pick up and you tackle this by prosecuting those who don’t. And professional dog walkers always pick up – it’s part of their code of conduct.
Lucy Bonnett, founder of the APDW, explained “We filed a Freedom of Information request and learned that there were just 59 complaints relating to dogs in Richmond since 2010 which included fouling and dog owners as well as dog walkers”.
She continued “And if you look at the PSPO it includes other measures to address anti-social behaviour in parks which could impact others. There are vaguely phrased restrictions that could apply to those without dogs. For example, there are statements about objects not being launched to cause injury – so will we still be able to throw balls? And there must be no “annoyance or damage” – so will we still be able to walk on grass?”
It is highly unlikely that the out of control groups of dogs are being walked by professional dog walkers. There is also plenty of evidence to suggest that the use of professional dog walkers improves the behaviour of the dogs they look after and reduces out of control behaviour generally. So the Council has picked an easy but wrong target in professional dog walkers.
The impact of these ridiculous regulations
The silly, unnecessary and undemocratic regulations in Richmond will lead to many dog walking businesses going bust. So those families will suffer reduced income and perhaps unemployment.
The remaining dog walking businesses are likely to increase their charges to accommodate the restrictions on the number of dogs they can walk and the cost of licensing. This means that they will be less affordable for those in lower income groups.
Lucy commented “The bulk of my dog walking business – which I have run for over 15 years - is for school teachers and emergency workers such as fire officers. Probably 20% is for people who are retired. We have a lot of ad-hoc work too when people's kids or family members are ill or they have work emergencies. Ad-hoc work would have to be the first thing to sacrifice if we are restricted to four dogs as we wouldn't be able to save any space as we wouldn't be able to afford to. Dog walking isn’t something that is just for those who are wealthy”.
It is likely that people will then either revert to untrained, inexperienced and uninsured dog walkers which will make the reported issues around failing to pick up poo and uncontrolled dogs even worse.
Or dogs will be left for long periods of time alone and without exercise. That’s cruel. And we already have a growing problem with dog obesity. Where is the RSPCA and other dog and animal welfare charities in this debate?
Or, the worst case scenario, people will feel compelled to give up their dogs. Some will inevitably be abandoned and then destroyed. Others will be sent to already overstretched rescue centres where the adoption rates will decline due to the lack of affordable dog walkers.
Specific health benefits from dogs
This week there were two important news stories about the health benefits of dog ownership.
The first – from the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Heath reporting on a long term study in Norfolk - said that older people walking with dogs were more active and healthy than those without. The study also suggested the social value of dog walking groups.
Another study – reported in Psychology Today - indicated that children growing up in an environment with pets had a developmental advantage – leading to higher self-esteem, cognitive development and social skills.
Anti-democratic and anti-dog?
Great Britain, when established in 1707, was one of the earliest democracies in modern times and we are regarded as an exemplar. English law is revered around the world for its technical supremacy and the English legal system is the preferred choice for business throughout the globe. England is also famous for being a nation of dog lovers. But Richmond Council seems determined to undermine these values.
Voice your views about uses of public open space with your local councillors.
The London Borough of Richmond Council report of the meeting and further details can be seen here: https://cabnet.richmond.gov.uk/documents/g4045/Public%20reports%20pack%20Tuesday%2011-Jul-2017%2019.00%20Regulatory%20Committee.pdf?T=10
