Stray dogs and dog control

The Service provided by the Council to uplift stray dogs is suspended meantime as no kennelling facility is currently available. 

If a member of the public has captured a stray dog and wishes to have the dog scanned for the presence of a microchip in an effort to identify the owner please get in touch with customer services to arrange for the Dog Warden to arrange for the scanning to be undertaken.  The Dog Warden will not uplift the dog.

Reporting a stray or out of control dog

Monday to Friday 9:00am to 3:00pm please contact Customer Services who will alert Inverclyde Council's dog warden service.

If you find a dog outwith these hours call Police Scotland on 101.

Lost dogs

If you have lost your dog please contact us as we may have been made aware of sightings of a dog in a public place.

Your responsibilities

  • Your dog must be microchipped.
  • You must not allow your dog to stray.
  • A dog in any public place must have a collar and tag with the owner’s name and address on it.

Out of Control Dogs

Dog owners have a legal requirement to keep their animals under control and there are sanctions available to authorities in dealing with out of control dogs.

Please note that any incidents involving a dog biting attack or serious injury on a person or another animal should be referred to Police Scotland for initial investigation. Inverclyde Council will consider other incidents involving a dog being out of control which gives rise to reasonable alarm or apprehension for the safety of a person or another animal. For further information see below.

Do dogs have to be kept on a lead?

The law says that dogs must be kept under close control, but does not state dogs must be kept on lead. If a dog responds to the owners commands and is kept close to heel, can lie down or returns on command, the dog would be considered to be under close control. If you're not sure that your dog can do this the responsible thing is to keep them on a lead.

'Out of Control'

Any dog, regardless of its breed, can cause fear and alarm, or even serious injury, if its behaviour is 'out of control'. This does not necessarily mean that the dog has acted in an aggressive manner. However, the legislation relates to when a dog's behaviour give rise to alarm, or apprehensiveness, which are reasonable in the circumstances.

Dealing with out of control dogs

The local authority can investigate concerns brought to our attention if we have the following information.

  • Details of when the incident took place, date and time.
  • Details of the dog(s) owner, - address, name (if possible).
  • Details of dog(s) involved in incident.