Woman fined for not having dogs tagged

West Lancashire Council chiefs issued a warning after a Skelmersdale woman was fined £660 after her two dogs were found wandering without ID discs and, while they were properly microchipped, this had not been registered so they were not on the database.

She was also ordered to pay £382.87 and a victim surcharge of £66 by Wigan magistrates.

The dogs were taken to the council’s stray dogs contractor and the owner claimed them from there. She was then served with a 21-day notice by the authority requiring her to register both dogs microchips and to inform the council she had done this.

The woman, who has not been identified by the council, failed to comply with the notice, but staff learnt through searching the database that the microchips were registered, and informed the court.

The owner did not attend the hearing and was prosecuted in her absence as she had failed to comply with the original notice within the allotted time.

People who own dogs they can face an unlimited fine if the animal does not have an identity disc in public. If they have more than one dog in public without identity discs they can face separate fines for each dog. It is also a legal requirement for dogs to be microchipped and the owner’s details kept up to date.

Anyone failing to meet these requirements can be served with a 21-day notice giving them the opportunity to get their dogs chipped. Failure to comply can result in prosecution and a fine of up to £500 per dog.