In a rather radical step to tackle the problem of dog poop left behind on its streets and green spaces, the German town of Weilerswist wants to conduct DNA tests on all the dogs in the city.

Independent Mayor Anna-Katharina Horst has asked the Association of Towns and Municipalities of North Rhine Westphalia, the state where her town is located, whether a legal basis could be created to take samples of the dogs' DNA.

In this way, it would be possible to determine from which dogs the stinking mounds originate and which owners are responsible for them. Other municipalities are also interested in a solution, she says. "It is a fact that there are some dog owners who do not comply with the duty to remove dog excrement," said the mayor of the town in the Eifel region.

Weilerswist is located to the west of the city of Bonn and has 17,500 inhabitants – but also 1,586 dogs. The politician says that dog poop is also found in cemeteries and playgrounds. She reports that the employees of the public works department also suffer from the misuse of green spaces as dog toilets. A medical mask is not enough to protect from the excrement: a visor is also needed.

The reactions to her initiative are mixed, reports Horst, who herself grew up with dogs. "What comes to me is mostly supportive." She wants dog excrement removed from public spaces, she says. Her motive, she says, is not to fill the municipality's coffers. "I'm going for a deterrent effect."