Fine for man who drove neighbours barking mad

A man has been fined after igoring warnings that his dog was driving his neighbours barking mad.

Shahid Hussain, 36, was found guilty by Rochdale Magistrates on one count of breaching a noise abatement notice and fined £450. He was also ordered to pay £150 in costs.

Neighbours had complained about a barking dog creating a noise nuisance day and night whilst chained up in the yard of a house on Drake Street, Rochdale.

Hussain had been warned on several occasions by council environmental health officers since they started to receive complaints back in August 2007 and subsequently he was served with a ‘noise abatement notice’ ordering him to keep the animal quiet. Officers witnessed a breach of the notice in April of this year and so he was summoned to court.

In the last two years the council received a catalogue of noise nuisance incidents about persistently loud barking. Mr Hussain was unable to provide any reasonable excuse as to why the animal was causing the disturbance and could provide no evidence that he had taken practical steps to minimise the annoyance.

Councillor Ted Flynn, cabinet member for community safety on Rochdale Borough Council, said: “Noise nuisance is something that gets people really frustrated, so it’s important we take it seriously. We’ll tackle those people continually causing such anti-social behaviour in our neighbourhoods – and that means taking court action where appropriate if the noise doesn’t stop.”

Andy Glover, Public Protection Manager at Rochdale Borough Council, added: “Barking dogs is one of the most commonly complained about causes of noise nuisances. Most pet owners do not realise that the law requires them to take responsibility for noise caused by their pets and where it’s causing a disturbance they have an obligation to minimise it.”