If you're a dog owner fined for neglecting to clean up after your pooch, you might consider yourself unlucky.

Key points: Only three fines have been issued for not picking up dog poo in metropolitan Adelaide in three years

Only three fines have been issued for not picking up dog poo in metropolitan Adelaide in three years A penalty increase from $55 to $210 acted as a deterrent, animal board says

A penalty increase from $55 to $210 acted as a deterrent, animal board says Football club inspects oval before games because dog poo is a health and safety issue

In the metropolitan Adelaide councils surveyed by the ABC just three people had received $210 penalties for not picking up after their dogs between 2016 and 2018.

Campbelltown, Charles Sturt and Port Adelaide Enfield councils each handed out one fine, while Onkaparinga and Mitcham fined one person each in 2015.

Beach walkers divided on issue

Henley Beach resident Jeremy Menz said the low number of fines did not mean dog poo was not a problem.

"You still see dog poo quite often and you want a really clean beach and you've got families coming down," he said.

Henley Beach local Jeremy Menz said it was a problem that only three people had been fined. ( ABC News: Isadora Bogle )

"If there's only been three fines in that time, I think something's a bit amiss."

But Rachel Anderson, owner of Staffordshire bull terrier Pokey, said she did not think dog poo was a problem.

"In comparison to most places around the world, we're a lot cleaner," she said.

Brian Norton, owner of golden retriever Bella, said he would be upset if he got fined on the beach.

"I know sometimes you'll go along and you turn round and you think 'oh the dog's been all right', but it might have done the poo quick and you didn't catch it," he said.

"There's a lot of things that I think are a little bit more important."

Councils often provide bags to dispose of dog poo. ( ABC News: Isadora Bogle )

Health issue for sports clubs

Goodwood Saints Football Club president Craig Scott said the club had to address dog poo as a health and safety issue every time a game was played at their home ground.

"We have to have an inspection of the oval and we have a couple of shovels in the storeroom and it's unfortunately someone's job to go and check the oval to make sure that there's no dog faeces on the oval and collect it," he said.

"Especially on a wet day and a player was to fall on it and it could then get into their mouth — that would be the issue."

Damien Riggs, an associate professor in Psychology at Flinders University, is part of an Animals in Society working group.

Dr Riggs said any animal waste — human or otherwise — going straight into the water without treatment was a problem for local marine life.

"Even if it does break down within the sand, during the tides, it's still going to be present in some form and that can be a health risk for everyone, any species," he said.

A council sign encouraging people to dispose of dog poo. ( Supplied )

Culprits not easy to catch

Port Adelaide Enfield Council chief executive Mark Withers said the offence of failing to pick up after a dog was hard to prove.

"We need it to be either witnessed by a community safety officer, or have a statement provided by a witness," he said.

"Generally, when officers are around, people clean up after their dogs."

While Charles Sturt Council only issued one fine in the past three years, it issued 14 cautions.

"If our officers observe dogs defecating, they speak with the dog owner and depending on the circumstances, try and educate and issue cautionary expiations," Charles Sturt chief executive Paul Sutton said.

"This discretion would apply in instances [such as] where the dog owner has already used one bag and the dog has had to go twice."

Dog and Cat Management Board secretary Andrew Lamb said the increase in the penalty from $55 to $210 in July 2017 has acted as a deterrent.

"We would expect a lot less people allowing their dogs to defecate in public as a result of the increase in penalties," he said.

But he said action often depended on people in communities complaining to councils so officers could go out and monitor a particular location.

"Each council has a discretion as to which matters they investigate and prosecute," he said.

Dog poo that has been left on a walkway at an Adelaide beach. ( ABC News: Isadora Bogle )

Communities need to take responsiblity

Mr Menz, the dog owner, suggested relying on the beach community to inform council officers to increase the number of fines.

"There's people who come down to the beach every day, they're always seeing dogs leaving waste everywhere and maybe there's a text message they can send," he said.

But Dr Riggs said rather than over-policing dog use of the beach, owners needed to be responsible for their animals.

"It's about taking care of their waste, taking care of their needs and not letting them bother other people in public spaces," he said.

"That's the same as… if you take your children to the beach."