DOG walkers are throwing bags of their animals' mess into trees alongside a Worcester canal footbridge.

Shrubbery along the footbridge of the Worcester and Birmingham Canal, in Wordsworth Avenue, off Bilford Road, Barbourne, is now littered with the excrement.

One woman, who asked not to be named, blamed the problem on the lack of dog bins in the area.

"We really need some bins round here, because we don't have any at all," she said.

"It's in the bushes and on the trees because people don't take it home with them and it is beginning to smell.

"It's not very nice for children because they have to walk along the bridge to get to school."

Ward Councillor Rod Staines said that those dog owners responsible were aware of the punishment they faced if they were caught leaving the excrement along the towpath.

"A lot of the people who walk their dogs up and down the canal know they will be caught and fined if they don't move the dog mess," he said.

"It's disgusting that people should have to put up with that by their homes.

"Unfortunately, there's no money available for the bins."

But officials maintained that the council did not have to provide any bins.

"There's no duty or responsibility for the city council to provide bins," said Martin Gillies, the city council's principal environmental health officer.

"The city council already provides 100 bins. The responsibility lies with the dog owner.

"If dog owners do not pick up or dispose of the mess appropriately, there is a £1,000 fine.

"We have taken a number of successful prosecutions in the last year.

"This includes any piece of land to which the public has access, including roads, towpaths and fields."

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