Is your town one of Spain’s worst for dog poo? What’s being done.

Dog poo on the pavement is one of those everyday annoyances that can turn a pleasant walk into an obstacle course. Across Spain, fed-up residents are taking matters into their own hands, with humorous posters, neighbourhood campaigns and tougher ways of identifying irresponsible dog owners. But which Spanish cities have the worst problems, what can residents do about dirty streets, and could your town be doing more to tackle the mess?

There is no current official national league table ranking every Spanish town by dog fouling. However, a survey by consumer organisation OCU provides a useful starting point, while recent campaigns show how residents are trying to make a difference.

Which Spanish cities have the worst dog poo problem?

OCU surveyed 6,863 residents in 69 Spanish cities about street cleanliness in 2023. Its findings identified dog faeces on pavements as one of the most common complaints.

Palma de Mallorca, Alicante and Sevilla received the worst overall assessments for street cleanliness. They were followed by San Sebastian de los Reyes, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Barcelona and Madrid.

The survey covered several types of street dirt, including rubbish around containers and graffiti, so these cities should not be described as Spain’s worst specifically for dog poo. Nevertheless, the findings point to a problem affecting towns and cities across the country. OCU also called for councils to increase street-cleaning frequency and do more to enforce rules requiring owners to pick up after their pets. The results provide a starting point for residents wondering whether their own town is keeping its streets clean.

Residents fight back with humorous posters

In Caceres, residents have recently decided to tackle the problem themselves. The Montesol Residents’ Association announced on October 7, that it was joining a campaign that began in the city’s historic Ciudad Monumental neighbourhood. Residents are being encouraged to download, print and display posters on their homes and businesses to discourage owners from leaving dog faeces and urine in public spaces.

Rather than relying on the usual official warning, the posters use humour to get the message across. One reads ‘Ya no necesitamos más suerte en el barrio’ (‘We don’t need any more luck in the neighbourhood’, a reference to the old superstition that stepping in dog poo brings good luck.)

Another uses the slogan ‘La OMS recomienda, al menos, 3 sentadillas al día’, joking that picking up after a dog provides the recommended exercise. The campaign encourages residents to spread the posters themselves, turning individual frustration into a neighbourhood-wide effort.

A similar approach was used in Rivas-Vaciamadrid, near Madrid, where residents put up sarcastic notices under the slogan ‘El club de los guarros’, meaning the club of dirty people.

National consumer organisation OCU has also called for cleaner pavements through its ‘Stop cacas’ campaign, which asks councils to improve enforcement and introduce genuinely deterrent penalties.

Can dog owners really be traced through DNA?

Some Spanish councils have introduced canine DNA registers to help identify dogs responsible for faeces left in public spaces. Burriana, in Castellon province, announced on October 11 that it was extending its free canine DNA testing programme by another 500 places. The council says the additional places should be available until the end of November or until they are filled.

After the free-registration phase ends, testing will cost €37.85 for owners who have not registered their dogs. Police will then begin checking the required genetic documentation. The council says specified breaches, including failure to register, allowing dogs off the lead where prohibited and failing to collect faeces, can attract fines of between €500 and €3,000.

These penalties are specific to Burriana’s rules and should not be confused with a nationwide fine. Each town has its own regulations and enforcement arrangements. For dog owners, the practical lesson is to check local requirements rather than assume that rules in another Spanish town apply to them.

What can you do if your street is covered in dog poo?

Residents who repeatedly find dog mess outside their homes can report the problem rather than simply waiting for the next street-cleaning visit.

• Start with your local council. Look for the Limpieza Viaria or Medio Ambiente department on the council’s website. Give the exact location, explain how frequently the problem occurs and include photographs if possible.

• Report repeat offenders. If you witness someone repeatedly leaving faeces behind, contact the Policía Local with the time, location and a description of what happened. Avoid confronting anyone if doing so could put you at risk.

• Keep a record of complaints. If the problem continues, submit a formal written complaint, known as a queja or reclamación, and keep the reference number so you can follow up.

• Check the local rules. Requirements concerning dog faeces, urine, leads and registration vary between towns. Your council can explain which rules apply and how to report a breach. In some places, such as Fuengirola, it is compulsory to carry a bottle of water when walking a dog to clean faeces remains and urine of a pet.

• People who use wheelchairs, pushchairs or mobility aids may find repeated fouling particularly difficult to navigate. Giving the council specific details about an affected pavement or access route can help explain the practical impact.

It’s not just dog poo: cats and wild boar cause problems too

Dog fouling may be the most familiar nuisance, but other animals can create sanitation problems in residential areas.

Feral cats can leave faeces in communal gardens, sandpits, children’s play areas, and often in the entrance to my house. Spain’s Animal Welfare Law provides for the management of feline colonies, with municipalities playing a role in their care and population control.

Residents concerned about hygiene can contact their council’s animal-welfare or environmental department to ask how a local colony is managed and how sanitation complaints are handled.

Wild boar can create a different problem in some residential areas, overturning rubbish bins, damaging gardens and leaving droppings. Their presence can also raise safety concerns when animals wander close to pedestrians, pets and traffic.

Residents in Torreguadiaro, in San Roque area, reported groups of wild boar appearing in streets and near the beach in October 2025. Their concerns included animals approaching people and dogs.

Anyone encountering wild boar should avoid approaching or feeding them and report recurring problems to the local police or environmental service. The boar are said to carry transmittable diseases, and could cause your family problems, especially if a pet dog or young child has contact with the faeces.

Who is responsible for it anyway?

Councils can sweep pavements, wash streets, tidy up after horse parades, and introduce higher fines, but they cannot prevent every single owner from leaving dog mess behind.

Recent neighbourhood campaigns demonstrate another approach: residents making the problem visible and encouraging people to take responsibility for the places where they live. OCU’s survey suggests that dog fouling remains a common complaint, although a newer comparable national ranking would be needed to establish which cities are currently worst affected.

For anyone who has had to steer a pushchair, wheelchair or shopping trolley around dog poo, the question is simple: how much longer should residents have to put up with it? And, if you have a pet that walks in the street, those little dog-poop bags that some councils make available, once filled, they go in a bin. They are not meant to be left on the street where someone might slip on them.