DOG owners who have fallen foul of Chiswick residents will be forced to rethink their animal's toilet trips after the Council acted on locals' complaints.

For months the pavements along Ashbourne Grove and Fraser Street in Chiswick have been littered with doggy deposits, left behind by careless owners. Residents have voiced their fears about the mess, which is not only smelly and unsightly but also contains harmful germs and bacteria, as the roads are often used by small children on their way to school.

The problem is not just restricted to the streets, local playing areas are also covered in the filth. Toby Clarke, of Chiswick Village, plays football for local team Racing Chiswick. Games on Southfield playing fields are treacherous as players dodge dog deposits as well as defenders.

Mr Clarke explained: "We have to scoop dog mess off the pitch before we can play and inevitably we don't locate it all. The gangrenous dangers are horrific, and it's made no better by the fact that kids use the pitches too."

Mr Clarke does not blame the council, who would "need a man there 24 hours a day to prevent it" but he does believe owners should take more responsibility when walking their dogs Ashbourne Grove resident Frances Baker has found the pavement outside her house to be like an obstacle course of both fresh and festering faeces.

Frances said: "I don't have a dog myself, but if I did I'd clean up after it.

"Most people do, but there is obviously a small minority who let their dogs go all over the street.

"I don't know which is worse, getting out of your car and standing in a steaming pile in the gutter or coming out of your house and treading in a heap right in the middle of the pavement. It's disgusting."

Ms Baker complained to the Dog Warden department and Hounslow Borough Council are now preparing to stencil reminders on the pavements, put up signs on the lampposts and give animal wardens more time to patrol the streets looking for offenders.

All of these measure will be backed up with the possibility of a £1,000 fine for owners who refuse to clean up after their own dogs.

The Council will also be running a full campaign throughout the borough in a few weeks time, aimed at cleaning up after canines.