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This is required whenever a dog is in a public place or a place of public resort.
Failure to comply is a criminal offence which can be prosecuted by a local authority. The offence is committed by the owner and, if different, the person in charge of the dog.
This law applies even if there is compliance with the microchipping law.
At Cooper & Co Solicitors, we promote the benefits of complying with this collar & tag law everywhere we get the opportunity!
But we are saddened to see so many people failing to comply with what should be such a simple requirement.Prosecutions are rare, but in our opinion it is about the benefits of compliance and not the detriment of enforcement. When you go out with your dog (or with someone else’s dog) please make sure it is wearing a collar (or a headcollar if you prefer) and that it has the correct identification. Subject to a few exceptions, this means:-
- It has the owner’s name
- It has the owner’s address (our preference is for the tag to state the full postal address as this is what we believe is the intention of the law but some people just prefer to have the house number + postcode, which in our view is less clear whether it’s compliant)
- The owner’s phone number is an optional extra
- The dog’s name is an optional extra
NB If your dog’s tag only has your phone number, unless one of the exemptions applies, you are probably committing a criminal offence every time you take your dog out.
Please check your dog’s tag (if it has one!) and make sure it has your name and address on it as a minimum (+ your phone number as an optional extra).One day you may thank us!