Kuala Lumpur  - Dog owners in a central Malaysian district must now obtain a written permission from their neighbours in order to keep their pets, a newspaper report said Thursday.

The ruling by the city council in the central state of Negeri Sembilan was aimed at ensuring that pet dogs were not a nuisance to neighbours, said council president Abdul Halim Abdul Latif.

"The pets cannot be allowed to roam freely outside their compound," he was quoted as saying by the Star daily.

Abdul Halim said dog owners would now need to submit the written permission from their neighbours in order to renew their pets' licenses.

Animals without licenses would be removed by council officers, with owners facing a 1000 ringgit (303 dollars) fine, he said.

The new ruling has irked residents and dog owners, who have slammed the move as unfair and biased against dog owners.

"My neighbour's cats defecate in my compound almost every day. Why doesn't the council make it a requirement for cat owners to get their neighbour's consent?" said resident Melissa Wong, who owns a dog.

Others have said that they would be forced to give their dogs up as they had a strained relationship with neighbours.

In 2003, council authorities in the southern Johor state ruled that dog owners must first get consent from their Muslim neighbours as dogs are considered "unclean" in Islam, Malaysia's official religion.

The ruling was criticised by opposition members and animal activists as a move that was intolerant and insensitive to the country's multiracial and multi-religious make-up. (dpa)