It proved a ruff week for dog walkers as Douglas councillors refused to extend the permitted zone for walkies on the capital’s beach.

From May to September between 10am and 6pm, dogs are only allowed on the north end of the beach from Switzerland Road to Summerland.

The council’s executive committee voted down a recommendation from the environmental services committee to revoke the bylaw which prevents dogs from being walked on the southern end of the beach.

During the debate on the dog bylaws, Councillor Betty Quirk said that ’nobody sunbathes’ on the beach anymore and that it is ’empty most days’ and asked for the chairman of the committee, council leader David Christian look again at this issue.

Mrs Quirk later told councillors she walks her dogs on the northern end of the beach but it is covered in seaweed and rocks and she fears slipping in the area.

She asked if he would consider extending the zone to the area of the Palace Hotel.

She was joined in her objection to sticking to the current bylaws by Councillor Natalie Byron who said it was ’a shame not to allow dogs on the beach when nothing else is happening there’.

And Councillor John Skinner asked: ’We are a nation of dog lovers. There are no swimmers or sunbathers so will the committee reconsider?’

However, Councillor Debbie Pitts defended the bye-laws, saying: ’It’s okay saying the beach isn’t being used, but people won’t use it if dogs are running free.

Encourage

’We should encourage people to use the beach and we’re not going to do that if we let dogs use most of the beach.’

Councillor Ian Clague said if the council wanted to get more people to use the beach it was not going to encourage them without a dog-free zone’

Mr Christian responded to the issues raised and said he wouldn’t be withdrawing the recommendation and said he knows people who ’won’t go on the beach because there are dogs out of control’.

He added: ’I walk along the promenades a few times a week and some people have no control over their dogs.

’They can walk one or two and have control over them but you see people with five or six and then they let them off the lead and they’re away.

’And the dogs are only playing but they can knock over children which puts their parents off going there and not all dog owners will clean up after their pets.

’We should be able to say to families, if they want to use the beach, then there is an area they can go with no dogs.

’Otherwise we’re telling people to go to Port Erin or Peel for their days out.

’There is a space provided for dog walkers and surely that means we can and do cater for all.’