Stray Dog Collection and Kennelling Service

Derbyshire Dales District Council, like all district and borough councils, has a statutory duty under the Environmental Protection Act 1990, to accept and kennel stray dogs for a minimum of seven days, while efforts are made to trace and reunite them with their respective owners. The availability of a high quality and reliable local kennels to safely house stray dogs for the statutory period is therefore key to the delivery of a quality service to the public. Beyond a requirement to provide a 24 hour acceptance point at which members of the public may deliver stray dogs, the Council’s service provider is required to make reasonable provision for the collection of strays during normal office hours and, in exceptional cases, out of hours.

In addition to the acceptance and kennelling of stray dogs, the Council’s service provider must also provide a means of allowing owners to reclaim their dogs between set times, where necessary collecting the relevant release fees on behalf of the Council.

Each year we collect or accept approximately 39 stray dogs from around the district. A significant number of these strays have been microchipped or have a collar and identification tag which enables our appointed service provider to very quickly identify the owner and to make the necessary arrangements for them to be reunited with their dog. In instances where the owner cannot be identified, the dog is taken to a kennel where it is temporarily looked after for up to seven nights. During that time, all reasonable measures are taken to reunite the dog and owner or to re-home the dog if the owner cannot be found or want to surrender the dog . On the eighth day, where a dog has not been reclaimed by its owner and no offer of re-homing has been made, it is transferred to a local rescue centre, which takes further steps, wherever possible, to rehome animals without recourse to their destruction. Where necessary, veterinary care will be sought for any dogs suffering from any illnesses.