LAZY dog owners in Melksham have been urged to pick up their pet's mess wile they are out walking their four-legged friends.

The call comes from Melksham Without Parish Council which has received complaints from one of the sports teams using the Bowerhill Sports Field.

Parish clerk Teresa Strange said: "We have received a complaint from one of the regular football teams that pay to play here about the amount of dog mess on the field.

"Please pick up your dog mess and put in one of the many bins provided on every exit of the field. Leaving dog mess on fields that people play on is unacceptable."

Dog fouling is a major concern, not just because of the mess it causes, but because it can be a health risk.

Dogs may deposit roundworm eggs (toxocara canis) in their faeces, which become infectious after about three weeks and can remain so for up to two years.

Mrs Strange added: "Anyone, but particularly children playing near to the ground, can run the risk of picking up and swallowing the eggs.

"The eggs then hatch in the intestine, burrow through the intestine wall into the blood stream and pass into the body."

"Bowerhill Sports Field is a public open space to be used by all. Please don't spoil it."