I am one of the regular contributors that David Heilpern references in his article (8 March) and I applaud his approach. The latest statistics I have read show that 61 per cent of households (and growing) have a pet and a significant number of those would be dogs.
The problem is not going to go away unless a concerted effort along the lines David suggests is undertaken. Given he has written the article, I presume the legality and efficacy of taking a photograph of an offender, uploading to a Facebook page and the resultant identification. The serial offenders would soon appear consistently. The simple action of taking a photo of an offending owner would have the desired effect and there would be no need to hold a conversation that can lead to abuse.
It is true that the majority of owners are very responsible and it is this group’s energy we need to harness. A critical mass of conforming owners is required to change the behaviour of the minority who reside in some form of personal ‘dog awe’ euphoria that is generally apparent only to them. They can be identified when they call their dog and it pays them no heed whatsoever.
I suggest a concerted, coordinated education program be introduced, starting with: ‘No dog can be off leash at any time in any public area unless you can see a sign that indicates the contrary’. That, in effect, is the current law, and if this was universally understood and enforced it should reduce the need for most signage.
I would also like to see that when a dog is registered, a comprehensive online program must be completed by the owner explaining and agreeing to responsible ownership (This may exist?). A form of ‘dog’ licence if you like.
Finally, David is right about the need for a few to suffer maximum punishment. It will be the most effective deterrent in the short term and the convictions need to be well publicised. The latter, and education, were largely the reasons we were able to overcome the reticence to wearing seatbelts.
For four decades The Echo has printed the stories some people loved, some people hated, and some pretended not to read. If you want us to keep telling the truth, the real truth, not the sugar-coated version. We’ll need your support to keep the presses rolling. 
