Appeal judges rule cat droppings in a neighbour's garden can be a health nuisance that councils must investigate

Richard Williamson, a father in Caerphilly, complained in October 2024 that his neighbours' two cats had fouled his front garden for months, putting his young child at risk of toxoplasmosis. Caerphilly County Borough Council refused to investigate, its environmental health officer insisting cats, unlike dogs and livestock, have a 'right to roam'.

Earlier, HH Judge Jarman KC found the council never considered whether droppings were a harmful 'deposit' under law.

Drawing on an 1861 sheep-dung case, Lord Justice Miles ruled animal droppings can amount to a deposit.

Responsibility only matters later, when councils serve abatement notices on 'the person responsible for the nuisance'.