Manningham Council warns of fines for people who dump dead animals in parks

MANNINGHAM Council is warning pet owners they could be fined $311 for dumping dead animals in public parks.

The spot at Ruffey Lake Park where a walker says he found a dead dog left in a blanket.

MANNINGHAM Council is warning pet owners they could be fined $311 for dumping dead animals in public parks.

This follows a bizarre week with council officers looking for a dead dog wrapped in a blanket in Ruffey Lake Park, and finding a dead cat in a blanket instead.

RELATED: Dead crocodile found at popular dog park

Mystery still surrounds who removed a dead dog wrapped in a blue blanket, which lay there for 10 days, according to a local man.

The dead dog/cat drama unfolded when Doncaster East man Clive Haug stumbled on a dead dog wrapped in a blue blanket while walking his jack russell Rosie in the park on Sunday, August 7.

He phoned Manningham Council the next morning to report the animal, which he told Leader lay there for another week before it was removed.

Leigh Harrison, council’s assets and engineering director, said a local officer went to the park on Tuesday in response to Mr Haug’s call, but couldn’t find the dog.

Mr Harrison said the next day another more detailed call came in from someone else about a dead animal wrapped in a blanket. When the officer went to the park they found a dead cat wrapped in a blanket.

The cat, which was not microchipped, was taken to the pound.

Mr Harrison said the council assumed this was the end of the matter, as a dead animal had been removed from the park.

Council had not collected a dog, nor was the colour of the blanket the cat was wrapped in known.

But Mr Haug stands by the dead dog sighting. “Someone had made a miserable attempt to bury it,” he said.

“I’m quite disgusted by the fact (it) was left exposed for 10 days, and it was very visible.”

He is also concerned children may have seen the dead dog.

Mr Harrison said people could bury dead pets in their gardens or have them cremated at the vet. They could then scatter the ashes at Ruffey Lake Park if they wanted to.