The Ramblers - Derbyshire Dales Group

Dogs on Leads

Executive Meeting View                                           See letters

At our Executive Meeting on Friday 24 July, we discussed the perennial problem of whether dogs should be on leads on our group walks. As this is a sensitive issue with both dog lovers and dog haters, I thought it would be useful to post the legal position, courtesy of John Riddall's excellent "Blue Book" (Rights of Way: A Guide to Law and Practice, 4th edition, co-authored with John Trevelyan). Dogs are considered to be a "usual accompaniment" of a foot passenger on a right of way. Consequently, for a walker to take a dog on a public right of way is not trespass. However, the entitlement to take a dog on a public right of way is confined to the line of the path. If a dog is allowed to run around off the path, trespass is committed against the holder of the land. There is no rule requiring dogs to be on a lead on a public right of way. However, it is an offence for a dog to be "at large" in a field where there are sheep. "At large" is defined as not on a lead or otherwise under close control. Different rules apply to access land: under the CROW Act 2000, a person who takes a dog onto access land is required to keep it on a short lead between 1 March and 31 July, and at any time that it is in the vicinity of livestock on such land.

There is a concern about attacks by cattle on dog walkers and there have been 2 recent well-publicised cases; one locally involving David Blunkett. However, such attacks are not common and the usual advice is to let the dog go if there is a threat of cattle attack. All in all, I think our current policy is right. We cannot condone an act of trespass on a Group walk by allowing a dog to run loose. The way we can ensure that this does not occur is that dogs are kept on a standard lead. Even then, the walk leader must be allowed to use their discretion, as there may be routes where the presence of a dog would be unsuitable or even dangerous. Obviously, whatever individual members do when they are out on their own is their own responsibility.

Geof Cole

Footpath Secretary

[Front page] [Walks Programme] [Chairman] [New Membership Secretary] [Keswick weekend] [Lake District 2010] [Footpaths] [Volunteers Required] [Articles] [Dogs] [Dogs or no dogs?] [Derbyshire Area] [Social events] [Committee] [Walking holiday] [Constitution] [Yahoo Group] [Links]