Poop Patrol: Why a French town is introducing DNA testing for dogs

Nobody likes dog waste, but this town in France appears to have come up with an odd way to figure out who isn’t cleaning up after their dog: DNA sampling of the pets. The city is compiling a canine DNA database to determine whether dog owners are not picking up after their pets. Dog owners would be penalised if they do not have a “genetic passport” for their dog when out walking it. They also plan to charge owners for not cleaning up dog poop if it is traced back to their dog. Fed up with the faeces on pavements Dog owners in a southern French town are having to get their pets DNA tested under new rules to tackle the scourge of poop-strewn pavements. The mayor of Beziers has introduced the mandatory tests, meaning street cleaners will be able to take samples from droppings they find in the centre of the town to identify the owners. Inhabitants and visitors are fed up with faeces on the town’s pavements, he says. Those responsible for failing to pick up their animals’ poo will be forced to pay a €120 (Rs 11,085) cleaning fee. [caption id=“attachment_12884102” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] The new rules have been introduced on an experimental basis for the next two years. File image/AP[/caption] “I’m outraged that some people never clean up after their animals,” Mayor Robert Menard told local radio France Bleu at the weekend. “We did a count: the town picked up 1,000 (dog turds) just in the centre. That’s not right. “We thought that if we put police officers on the street it would have an effect, but when there’s a police officer, people clean up. It’s when there’s no one around that they don’t crouch down and do their civic duty,” he added. The new rules have been introduced on an experimental basis for the next two years. People need to behave properly Dog owners in the centre of Beziers, a renowned bullfighting town, will need to take their pets to a vet or request a free saliva sample from one of the town’s veterinary specialists. The samples will be genetically examined, and a certificate will be provided that will serve as their dogs’ “genetic passport.” Those subsequently stopped without their dog’s genetic passport will be fined €38 (Rs 3,501). Dog excrement detected on the street will be collected and tested, and the results will be transmitted to police, who will examine national pet records and link it to a specific owner, who will face a street cleaning charge of up to €122 (Rs 11,054), according to Ménard as reported by The Guardian. Menard, who is an independent with close links to the far right, has been seeking to introduce dog DNA testing since 2016, but has had previous efforts knocked back by the state on legal grounds. However, no objections to its implementation were raised this time, reports The Guardian. [caption id=“attachment_12883812” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Those responsible for failing to pick up their animals’ poo will be forced to pay a €120 (Rs 11,085) cleaning fee. Image used for representational purpose/Pixabay[/caption] Menard told French radio: “I can’t take any more of this [dog] mess. The state has said nothing against this scheme this time and thinks the same thing. This has to be done and not just in Béziers … We need to penalise people so that they behave properly. He added, “There will be a certain lenience for those who are not from Béziers. If they pick up their dog dirt, we won’t bother them. We’re not xenophobes. Foreigners aren’t the problem, it’s the locals who are not cleaning up.” The €120 (Rs 11,054) cleaning up fees will not be enforced for three months, with Menard promising that there will be a soft launch. “People who don’t clean up after their dogs couldn’t give a damn about anyone,” Menard added. “Sometimes I hear people say, ‘It’s up to municipal workers to clean up after my dog.’ They’ll see now. It’s going to cost €120.” DNA testing for dogs is not new DNA testing for dogs — usually done at the vets with a saliva sample — has been introduced in a host of cities worldwide including Tel Aviv in Israel, Valencia in Spain and some areas of London. Landlords in some private residential compounds in Florida and elsewhere have also introduced rules requiring residents to provide DNA samples of their animals to identify pavement foulers. In 2015, UK’s Flintshire County council in north Wales reportedly considered using a DNA database to clamp down on dog mess. The Isle of Wight and Hyndburn in Lancashire have also discussed using genetic testing. The mayor’s office in Beziers said cleaning up dog faeces cost the municipality of 75,000 people around €80,000 per year. With inputs from AFP