Introduction There are approximately seven million dogs currently residing in the UK, producing 1000 tonnes of faeces per day.1 In 2005, the charity ENCAMS (Environmental Campaigns) estimated that there were more than 200,000 complaints by members of the public in England on the subject of dog fouling in the 3-year period of study.2 In the same year, the Local Government Association reported that 95% of the British public are worried about dog fouling in public places.3 A survey by Keep Britain Tidy between April 2008 and March 2009 of 12,540 sites in 54 local authority areas in England found that 8% of these sites were contaminated with dog excrement.4 Dog fouling has both direct and indirect effects on public health.