Housing staff in Sandwell have won a top national award for their work on dealing with pet issues in the borough.

The silver award, under the Pawprints Awards scheme run by the RSPCA, is for the council's work on preventing irresponsible pet ownership which can cause nuisance to neighbours and suffering to animals. Councillor Kerrie Carmichael, cabinet member for housing said:

“We have some important controls in place to prevent irresponsible pet ownership, because of possible nuisance problems and the need to prevent suffering to animals.

“We sometimes have to take action because we have zero tolerance on dangerous dogs or animals and we are aware that dogs can be involved in anti-social behaviour with dog barking or fouling problems.”

The council takes action on reports of cruelty and seeks prosecution where appropriate. It also offers advice on dealing with horses on council land, dealing with wildlife in Sandwell and offers details of vets available in Sandwell.

The Pawprints award scheme has been run by the RSPCA for 10 years and is organised to help it  reduce cruelty and abuse of animals. Last year the organisation said it had rescued more than 114,000 animals.