The Sofia Inspectorate and the municipal police are starting daily inspections from Monday in the places where pet dogs are walked. It will be monitored whether the animals are kept on a leash and whether they are cleaned up after them, as well as whether they are registered, explained the director of the inspectorate Nikolay Nedelkov. The campaign will cover all districts of the Sofia Municipality,
The inspections will be carried out not only during working hours, but also early in the morning and late in the evening. In addition to parks and gardens, inter-block spaces where pets are regularly walked will also be covered, Nikolay Nedelkov explained:
"Where we know based on signals that there have been incidents with dogs, complaints that dogs are not cleaned up after them, and other problems related to pets".
If it is established that a dog owner is walking his dog without a reason or does not clean up his excrement, a fine of up to 100 leva will be imposed. In the absence of registration, only a warning will be issued and an invitation will be made to do so. Municipal Councilor Marta Georgieva recalled that registering a dog brings benefits to the owner.
"It is not intended to harass the owner, but to help him find his dog much more easily in case of loss".
Out of 250 thousand dogs in Sofia, only 15 thousand are registered, explained the municipal authorities. The annual fee for the owner of a registered dog is 24 leva, and the purpose of these funds is to create spaces for walking pets.