ANGRY residents of Scotland’s capital city have put up a sign renaming a street “Dog S***e Lane”.
The sign has been put up just a few hundred metres from the Michelin-starred Restaurant Martin Wishart in the upmarket Shoe area of Leith.
Residents put up the sign in Sandport Place because they were so sick of the amount of dog mess left behind by owners – including “drive by” incidents where motorists let their pooches out of the car just to do their business.
One local took a photo and shared it on social media, complaining that his four-year-old daughter had to avoid mounds of dog poo on the way to a play park.
Stuart Millar, 33, shared the image on Twitter and said: “Residents in Leith show their displeasure at the state of the path.”
It shows the sign, carefully made to look like the real thing, which has been stuck on top of railings at the side of the path.
Disgusted social media users replied to the post and voiced their displeasure.
Trevor Wales said: “Would be nice to see the council fine these dirty gits. I have two dogs and pick up after them all the time. The amount of time I’ve stood on dogs poo doing so is a joke, when it’s dark etc, or in the undergrowth.”
Another user said: “We have a street near us we call s*** street. Disgusting I know, but people drive up and open their car door and let their dog do their business then drive off.”
Speaking today (MON), Stuart said: “There was quite a bit of s*** all along the path on Saturday morning, in various stages of decay, and my wee one had to dodge it at a few points.
“I was just out for a walk, heading from a play-park next to the water up to a café for a warm drink.
“We walk there fairly regularly, and sometimes feed the ducks and ride bikes. The amount of mess differs at points along the path, but there’s always something there.
“I can quite understand why someone put the sign up – on Saturday the path near the sign had about four prize turds in a fifty-yard stretch.”
Edinburgh City Council have insisted that they work hard to try to deal with the issue of dog fouling, and urged people to report any incidents that they witness.
Transport and Environment Convener, Councillor Lesley Macinnes, said: “This situation only goes to highlight the frustration dog’s dirt on our pavements and paths causes to the general public, thanks to inconsiderate behaviour by a small minority of dog owners.
“We are always working to tackle this issue and our environmental wardens routinely respond to complaints, targeting hotspot areas. Unfortunately, it’s not always possible to catch irresponsible dog owners in the act in order to hand out a fine. I would encourage people to report any incidents of dog fouling on our website so we can respond as quickly as possible.”
In 2014 Fife Council used thermal imaging equipment – usually used to catch criminals and dangerous drivers – in an attempt to catch out dog owners who failed to pick up their dogs’ mess.
And last month the same authority send plain-clothed wardens out to catch irresponsible dog owners and clean up Fife’s streets.
It was reported in 2016 that only 67 fines were issued to Edinburgh residents for allowing their dogs to foul city streets last year – despite more than 1,500 complaints being made by members of the public.
