to think Dog Wardens should actually catch dogs

[KumquatMay]

I called the Dog Warden today to report a loose dog running around. This dog runs free a lot and regularly runs out into the road where there is 6 lanes of traffic, often running out in front of cars and causing cars to brake suddenly etc.

DH and I were walking to the park when we saw the dog running across the road and called the warden as we followed it into the park - told them it was somewhere in the park (which isn't massive). The Warden told me that they couldn't come out and get the dog "unless it was contained"; basically a member of the public has to catch it, then call the warden who would come and get it.

AIBU in thinking it's totally U to expect a member of the public to approach a potentially dangerous dog and that's actually the Dog Warden's job?

Mmm weird. I also thought it was the Dog Warden's job to deal with loose dogs. What is the dog had been stressed or aggressive, shouldn't a professional rather than a member of the public be dealing with it?

I've called the dog warden before and was asked to catch the dog. It was a big Rottweiler running loose at a children's play ground. I had DD and my own dog with me. There was no way I was going to go any where near that dog!

Not sure if they came out in the end. Police weren't interested either. I thought that was the exact purpose of the Warden. If not, then what are they for????

Problem is it can be nearly impossible to catch a dog and a total waste of their time and money coming out if it can't be approached. Dog wardens are few and far between, they typically are expected to cover a massive area.

I used to think similarly and would have been outraged that they didn't attend to catch a dog. Now working in a veterinary practice and having voluntarily gone out to try and catch a loose dog that had been hit by a car (received a call from a member of the public, dog warden wouldn't attend, we felt obliged to try and do something) I understand completely. We couldn't get within 50 feet of the bloody dog and spent a full hour diving through hedges, setting up elaborate ambushes and scattering dog biscuits around the countryside. I wouldn't bother again unless the dog was in an enclosed area of some sort.

I've managed to catch 5 dogs. Three were loose in the middle of the road so I just opened the car boot and asked them to get in, two were in fields so I popped my two dogs on one lead and used the other one on the lost dog. Four of them had tags so I called the owners and the fifth weirdly enough managed to walk me all the way to its home.

However all that was pre DD days and I am not sure I would want a toddler right next to an unknown dog.

Presumably dog wardens have traps, those long loopy stick things for catching dogs (do you know what I mean? A stick with a loop at the end of it that can be threaded over the dog's head) and the knowledge to assess the dog's temperament and decide on the best way to approach it.

Don't get me started on this. Our council dog wardens are useless. We reported a dangerous dog next door that broke a hole on the fence and kept coming onto our property, and went for me a couple of times. They didn't respond for weeks, and then all they were interested in was filling in forms to protect themselves from future repercussions. I suspect that all dog wardens may be similar jobsworths with no interest in doing their jobs!

It seemed like a friendly dog and we tried to catch it but it kept running off. Apparently it's owned by a family nearby who just let it out to run around in the road and the park all day.

I can understand that it might be a waste of their time running around trying to catch dogs, but surely as dog wardens they are better equipped to do it than members of the public?! It just seems crazy that the dog warden's strategy is to expect members of the public to take huge risks approaching a dog, or otherwise just let it carry on running around and being a danger