ZERO tolerance to dog fouling in Sandwell is being stepped up with pavement warnings to irresponsible owners in hot spots.

The move follows the dishing out of 73 fines by council wardens in recent months.

They have also handed out thousands of dog mess bags and educated owners to help keep streets and open spaces clean.

The council and its waste partner Serco, is now trialling temporary stencils on the pavement in areas where there have been lots of complaints, to warn people about fines.

People not picking up mess after their dogs face a £75 on-the-spot fine.

Council leader Councillor Darren Cooper said: “As a dog owner myself, I’m fed up with the small minority of people who don’t clean up after their pets. It’s something that really annoys responsible dog owners as well as others who tread in it.

“For many people, this is the number one priority problem they keep reporting to the council. They are worried, too, by the potential for mess to spread disease – especially in children and young people who play in our parks and open spaces.

“We had nearly 800 dog fouling reports last year – council taxpayers’ money could be much better spent on other frontline services than cleaning up this mess.

"We have to act – that’s why we’re taking such a strong approach. The council and residents are not prepared to put up with this any longer.”

Winter is the peak season for dog fouling complaints.

People are also urged to snitch on those not cleaning up after their dogs at www.sandwell.gov.uk/dogfouling, email contact@sandwell.gov.uk or call 0845 359 7501.

They need to give details of time, date, location, description of dog and owner, so the mess can be cleaned up and those responsible tracked down.

Hundreds of free dog mess bag holders - including a set of bags - are available on a first-come, first-served basis at www.sandwell.gov.uk/dogbags or 0121 569 6889.