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Cornwall dog warden: getting your dog back

If Cornwall council's dog warden service picks up your dog, you pay its fees before you can take them home. Here's what it charges, from its own website (October 2026), and what to do if your dog goes missing in Cornwall.

What Cornwall charges

£120*after one night in kennels

£100 minimum release and admin fee, then £20 a day (or part day) in kennels; £55 extra out of hours

Kennels charge per day or part day, so collecting the next day may add another £20. Full payment is needed before release.

For a microchipped dog with correct details, collected in working hours and picked up the next day in office hours. Vet treatment is extra. * The council's page leaves some room for doubt: see the note.

Cornwall council's stray dog page · no year given

How it compares

  • The 4th dearest of the 13 councils in the South West whose fees give a one-night total.
  • The middle cost in the South West: £104.93.
  • Across the UK: £100, from 186 councils. 13 charge £200 or more.

Every UK council's fees

If your dog is missing in Cornwall

  1. Call Cornwall council's dog warden or stray dog service now (its number is on its stray dog page), and the neighbouring councils too: dogs travel. Give a description, a photo and the microchip number.
  2. Ask them to check their register of stray dogs, which councils must keep and anyone can see free. The council only has to keep a stray for seven clear days.
  3. Tell your microchip database your dog is missing. Not sure which one? Our microchip number checker shows you.
  4. Ring vets and rescues nearby, post in local groups, and put up posters: the free lost dog poster maker takes a minute.
  5. When you collect, bring proof your dog is yours (microchip paperwork, vet records, photos) and a way to pay.

The full steps are in our lost dog checklist and our guide to getting your dog back from the dog warden.

Questions

How much does Cornwall charge to get a dog back from the dog warden?+

About £120 for a microchipped dog kept one night and collected the next day in office hours, worked out from the council's own fee list (October 2026): £100 minimum release and admin fee, then £20 a day (or part day) in kennels; £55 extra out of hours. Kennels charge per day or part day, so collecting the next day may add another £20. Full payment is needed before release. Vet treatment is extra.

How long does Cornwall keep a stray dog?+

By law (section 149 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990), seven clear days. After that the council can rehome your dog, so call as soon as your dog goes missing. Kennel costs go up each day.

I've found a dog in Cornwall. What do I do?+

Check its tag first, and scan a QR tag if it has one: returning a dog to its owner costs them nothing. Otherwise the law (section 150 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990) says to take it to the council's dog warden service straight away and say where you found it.

Other councils in the South West