DARK nights are upon us and animal and owner are walking the streets.

But man's best friend is loose, not on its lead, free to roam, and yes it's being a good friend to its owner by depositing its dirt in someone's garden - saving its owner from having to pick it up, a disgusting job that no owner must enjoy. No wonder its owner lets it run free under cover of darkness to save such a task.

Giving my front lawn its last cut for the year this past weekend I found three piles of the stuff - not found previously when the nights were light.

Luckily, I missed getting it into the mower blades which would have been a disgusting, smelly job to remove, the smell being bad enough just removing it from the lawn.

So come on you dog owners, be responsible, keep your animal under control and don't leave others to clean up its mess. Remember, it's your best friend.

D Reed, Darlington.