According to this a pack of the critters was rounded up at some point prior to 2010 - maybe they were still there in 2007? http://portugalresident.com/dog-fouling-in-luz
Thank you for the link, as it contains a small nugget of pure gold.
Re the tale, I am somewhat sceptical. I've no doubt the part about '3 bins, only 1 on the promenade' is correct.
However ...
Every time I have visited the front, either physically or on the webcam, shortly after dawn, there is a cleaning crew in action, collecting rubbish from the promenade and the beach. Including pooh.
There are numerous signs up saying dogs are not permitted on the beach. But my early morning visits (physical) invariably place dog-walkers on the beach, always with the dogs off the leads, typically more than one dog per walker, and typically the dog walkers socialise with each other while their 'pack' romps freely if it wishes.
Throw into the mix the large number of dog sanctuaries on the Algarve, each of which will come and round-up strays upon a single phone call.
So a 'wild' dog 'pack' running on the streets for any length of time is unlikely.
So where is this pooh coming from? As I have said it is normal to walk dogs off the lead here, whether there are people around or not. Those dogs pooh. And in the main, dog owners do not bother to clean up after their dogs.
Combine that with a lack of bins, and pooh would lie around during the day, until early morning the following day, when the cleaning crew would ...
Assuming the McCanns went to the beach in the early morning, they should have seen dog-walkers, cleaning crew, and folks enjoying their early morning constitutional. Personally, I have never made it down there and been the only person.
Maybe the other folks were sleeping-in after a long night searching?