In its campaign to constrain our dogs DLR CC and certain councillors (step forward Mr. Humphreys) have painted a lurid picture of the clear and present danger presented by Toxocariasis. According to the latest statistics from the UK (see link below) your chances of being infected from dog faeces are 1 in 5,900,000 - let's say 1 in 6 million (there were 10 cases in a population of 59 million). Your chances of being struck by lightning are 1 in 500,000 (see second link below). Therefore we are twelve times more likely to be struck by lightning as we walk on our beaches. This does not of course mean that we should be blase about dog shit - but it does suggest that it's more an aesthetic issue than the brown plague intimated by the anti-dog lobby.
http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/Toxocariasis/Pages/Introduction.aspx
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lightning_strike
Absolutely ridiculous and uninformed. These people should educate themselves before they open their mouths. They should encourage responsible owners not antagonise the very people who look after their animals and abide by the law. It could only happen in Ireland!
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