A Facebook post - which suggested a district council would DNA test dog poo and fine ‘irresponsible’ owners - is fake.
The hoax post has been shared in a number of Facebook groups and was created to look as though it was shared by the Vale of White Horse District Council page.
READ MORE: Fines for not picking up dog mess are set to double in Cherwell
The post, made to look as though it was posted on December 10, said the council had partnered up with a ‘leading DNA Laboratory’ to combat dog fouling.
It stated the council had collected ‘thousands of samples from dog poo bins and from the streets’ which identified individual dogs in a ‘database’.
It added a campaign was planned to ‘identify owners’ and when caught the dog owners would be fined £200 for each entry in the database.
Vale of White Horse District Council has said the post is fake.
A spokesperson for Vale of White Horse District Council said: “This post is not from the genuine Vale of White Horse District Council Facebook account. This is also not a Vale of White Horse District Council policy.
“However, the issue of dog fouling is one which the council takes very seriously. We would urge anyone who sees a see a dog owner allowing their dog to foul and not picking it up please note down as many details as they can that might help us to identify them.”
In order to start an investigation into dog fouling the council requires: the date and time, location of incident, description of person in charge of the dog, description of the dog and/or address of person in charge of the dog.
The council also needs a written statement for their investigation which could lead to a Fixed Penalty Notice being issued.
The current fine is £50. If a person refuses to pay they can be taken to the local Magistrates Court for the dog fouling offence and fined up to £1,000.
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