Your Letters: One resident talks about their frustrations of loose dogs on the playing field in Westfield.

I have just returned from walking my dogs in Westfield.

I was somewhat surprised that there were five dogs on the Westhill Gardens playing field running freely completely unleashed.

Several of the owners were using ball throwing devices that enabled them to hurl a ball right across the field for their dogs to chase.

Whilst I fully understand this is good exercise for the dogs, the extreme distance that the dogs are then away across the football pitch does mean that the owners would find it impossible or extremely difficult to locate any deposits left by the dogs relieving themselves.

This is a football pitch and at weekends will be heavily used as such, as well as being used by young children running and playing during the week.

As a retired nurse I am horrified to imagine the problems caused by a footballer or young child stepping or falling on a dog dropping, not the least being the dangers from some of the horrendous diseases it can carry such as Toxocariasis, E Coli and Campylo Bacteria.

I also noted that the Westfield Parish Council had erected large signs clearly showing that dogs must be kept on leads, other residents have told me that these field have had that restriction for many years.

I also understand that these signs have been repeatedly vandalised and on occasion removed.

Because of the loose dogs I decided that I would leave the field and moved to Norton Hill Recreation Ground, where I found more dogs running loose without leads, once again the field is clearly signed with “Dogs must be on Leads”.

There can be no excuse for this wildly irresponsible and antisocial behaviour.

Jane Hopkins