If you see a dog running loose in a Windsor city park, City Councillor Chris Holt wants you to call 311.
City council backed his motion to step up enforcement, albeit only slightly.
The city is boosting its overtime budget for bylaw enforcement officers by $5,000, or 100 hours a year. The funding is coming out of budget reserves.
However, Holt says the city will collect information over the next year, but it can't do it alone. It needs the public's help too.
"That data that we're going to be collecting, determining where the hot spots are for off-leash dogs [are], whether it's in Memorial Park, Malden Park, Optimist Park, wherever," says Holt. "Wherever we can best allocate that very small amount of resources."
Holt admits the move won't make a big difference in the short term, but hopes the increased presence of bylaw enforcement officers and calls from the public will serve as a deterrent.
After a year, he says the city should have a better idea where to use its resources to enforce bylaws in public parks.
The city will also investigate the possibility of allowing auxiliary police officers to ticket errant pet owners.
