Dear Editor,

I wonder from to time why the residents of central Ross-on-Wye are cursed with an unusually large number of antisocial dog owners.

It is impossible to enjoy the garden, or to open the windows on a hot day without being assailed by non-stop dog barking. These are, presumably, the same strange owners who think that there is a faeces fairy who magics away the black plastic bags they leave on pavements or hanging from shrubs, assuming that they bother to bag it in the first place.

Leaving your dog on its own in the garden for many hours may be convenient but is cruel to both it and the neighbours: the RSPCA says that the animals bark hysterically because they are anxious that they may have been deserted – so much for being an ‘animal lover’.

Unfortunately it is not always possible to identify where the dog lives, but near-neighbours should report the nuisance to the council’s environment department who can take the owner to court.

Name and address supplied