Dog owners in an Italian province are being forced to provide a sample of their pets’ DNA as officials try to tackle the scourge of dog mess on the streets.

The provincial government of Bolzano city and surrounding towns in the picturesque Dolomites region is setting up a database for the almost 40,000 dogs in the area, veterinary department director Paolo Zambotto said.

Around 10,000 have already been registered and, once up and running, it means abandoned poop can be genetically tested and traced back to a dog and its owner fined anywhere between 50 to 500 euros (£42-£430).

Any owners refusing to comply could be fined between 292 and 1,048 euros (£250-£900).

Mr Zambotto said: “Bolzano receives a few hundred complaints a year from citizens about improper management of public land. More than half are for dogs.

“Law enforcement could only catch three or four of them because they have to go there and set up some kind of stakeout.”

DNA registration will become compulsory from around late March.

Owners will be expected to have blood tests for their dogs, in municipal dog shelters or vet clinics, at a cost ranging from 65 to more than 100 euros (£56-£86).

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The cost of implementing the tests are planned to be covered by income from the fines.

Bolzano, a mountainous province near Austria, has wide autonomy in making its rules.

Mr Zambotto said other Italian cities had been in touch to potentially replicate the law, which doesn’t apply to tourists and non-residents.

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