Council staff get night-vision goggles to tackle dog fouling

Night-vision goggles are to be used by council staff in their fight against dog fouling.

%VIRTUAL-ArticleSidebar-council-stories%Stafford Borough Council have bought a £200 device called a monocular which has an in-built laser illuminator to improve viewing in the dark.

The gadget will help catch dog owners who do not clean up after their pets now the nights have drawn in for winter, the authority said.

Councillor Frank Finlay, cabinet member for environment and health, said considerate dog owners were "sick and tired" of those who gave them a bad name.

He added: "We target hotspots from information we get from our residents but with the darker morning and early evenings it is difficult to catch someone who is not cleaning up.

"These night-vision goggles will help us overcome this problem and let people know that, even under the cover of darkness, they cannot get away with showing blatant disregard to their fellow citizens."