Council's bill for stray dogs rises by £10,000

Wakefield Council says it is spending more on dealing with stray dogs

The annual cost of dealing with stray dogs in Wakefield has risen by more than £10,000, in part due to the cost of living crisis, a meeting heard.

Wakefield Council spent £56,388 in 2024-25, up from £44,654 in the previous financial year.

Daniel Wilton, cabinet member for communities, said the increase was partly down to the council entering into a new kennelling contract and requirements to comply with legislation on XL bullies.

However, he said: "We need to take into account external factors such as the cost of living crisis and the fact that a lot of people are not taking ownership of dogs due to cost of living pressures and austerity."

The meeting was told 194 animals were collected by the council's dog wardens in 2024/25.

Of those, 76 were reunited with their owners, 61 went to rehoming centres and 44 were euthanised.

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, there had also been an increase in the number of dogs being put down after being taken to the council's dog shelter.

The meeting heard nine out the 44 dogs euthanised in 2024/25 were XL bullies.

New laws banning the breed in England and Wales took effect in February 2024.

Wilton said: "We have also seen an increase in dog owners who haven't been able to pay for the release of the dogs from the kennels, or have been too ill for them to recover the dog.

"Unfortunately, they have had to be euthanised.

"This may have also contributed to the escalating costs to the council as we will have paid for the kennelling until the dogs were euthanised."

Witton said the council employed "a small team" of three dog wardens, who were "working very hard to reunite dogs with their owners before taking them to the kennels".

Pete Girt, independent councillor for Knottingley, told the meeting: "A good part of the reason why dogs aren't reclaimed is because when people move they don't update the chip, so then the owner can't be traced."

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