Bulawayo city fathers have demanded more efforts in the dog tie-up order, citing that stray dogs in the city continue being a menace.
The local authority launched an operation last month which is being carried out in partnership with the Zimbabwe Republic Police, Department of Veterinary Services, and the SPCA.
According to Council regulations, only two dogs are allowed per property under 2000 square metres and four dogs maximum for larger properties.
The dogs must be vaccinated, licensed, and kept inside properly fenced or walled yards, and are not allowed to roam freely in public.
Ward 25 Councilor, Aleck Ndlovu, called for more vigorous action against reckless dog owners and the growing stray dog population.
“The dog tie up order was issued and apparently there are some people who are very reckless with their dogs,” he said.
“Stray dogs cause a lot of fear, especially among children. Despite the widespread issue, only 21 notices have been issued, there is need for more enforcement from the responsible teams.”
Ward 8 Councilor, Edwin Ndlovu, defended the department’s efforts, applauding them for having shot 40 dogs in the past month.
He encouraged the department to continue with its efforts.
However, Ward 28 Councilor, Ntandoyenkosi Ndlov, criticized the effort, citing that 40 dogs, in comparison to the level of menace, is too little.
“We better look for community groups to be shooting dogs in the high density suburbs because the responsible department has failed.
“There is also the issue of pitbulls which are classified as dangerous dogs. There is a child who was recently killed by one. But upto now we have never seen a movement of developing a policy regulating dangerous dogs. We want to know what the challenge is,” said Ndlovu.
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