title: Children have the right to play free from the perils of fouled parks and pavements.
abstract: I am so incensed by the report about the shortsighted view expressed by the RCN officer in Northern Ireland and her objection to the anti-dog fouling poster showing a boy squatting (News May 22). She's right about one tiling - it is an abuse of children, but only because they cannot play freely without getting dog muck on their shoes and on their hands They can't even tumble off their trikes without fear of dog excreta infecting a small graze. I applaud Lisburn council's poster. Sort out the real abuse of children and defend their right to play free of dog muck.
authors.affiliation: East Sussex.
authors.forename: Lynne
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Phair