ACTIVISTS in Over Hulton have issued their own leaflets to dog walkers in a bid to rid the streets of dog mess.

Derek Bullock, a Conservative candidate for the Hulton ward at the forthcoming local elections, teamed up with resident Simon Wright to promote the responsible dog ownership campaign.

Mr Bullock said: "The leaflet, which aims to get the positive message across and uses a combination of humour and peer pressure, is being distributed and shared by local dog walkers across Hulton, which it is felt will be more effective than just lecturing people.

"Perhaps that is why other campaigns have failed."

The initiative is part of the Community Safety campaign of the Over Hulton Community Group.

Members of the amenity organisation, of which Mr Bullock is a committee member, hope this kind of direct appeal will be replicated in other areas of the borough equally blighted by people failing to pick up and bin dog mess.

Mr Bullock said the group would like to see other measures that would help eradicate the problem, such as pavement stencils and better dog mess bin provision.

Mr Wright, whose dog Jip features on the leaflet, said: "While there is deliberately some humour in the leaflet, dog fouling is no laughing matter for communities that have to face it, caused by a small minority of dog owners who still refuse to properly clean up after their dogs — ignoring the potential for harmful health risks, especially for children."