Oldham Council slammed for having “no plan” for stray dogs   

Liberal Democrat Group Leader councillor Howard Sykes MBE has slammed Oldham Council for having “no plan” for how to handle stray dogs in the Borough. 

Councillor Sykes said, “Residents have been contacting us after they’ve come across a stray dog, looked at how to report the problem and found there is no real support from the Oldham Council.”

“The information on the Oldham Council website is.  Unless you’re able to catch the dog and safely drive it to Harpurhey, there’s really not much advice at all.”

A ‘stray animals’ advice page on the Council website states that “The Council is in the process of implementing new arrangements for the collection of stray dogs… We expect this to be in place by Autumn 2024.”

Residents are advised that they can take a stray dog to Manchester Dogs Home in Harpurhey between the hours 9am-4pm.  The Council state that “If you cannot keep the dog secure, please contact an animal rescue centre, and they might be able to assist you.”  No contact details for local rescue centres are provided. 

Councillor Sykes said, “This ‘advice’ is really poor and even unsafe.  Is the council really suggesting that residents should have to take matters into their own hands and potentially put themselves in harms way?  When will proper arrangements be in place?  Oldham is full of dog-owners and you only have to have a look at local community groups on social media to know that pets do get lost.  This is no plan at all and the Council needs to do better, this is just another case of not getting the basics right.”  

“It’s certainly not good enough to tell people to contact a rescue centre without providing any contact details.  I hope this is urgently put right so that people looking to do the right thing are properly supported by their Council.”     

The Oldham Council advice page for stray dogs can be found here.