Dog Owners: do you bag after your dog?
 

This is part rant and part question because I walk my dog three times a day and I am so tired of avoiding the piles of dog shit left by other dog owners.

We have a law in this city (as well as a policy in our apartment complex) that says you must bag after your dog, but I think I am one in a handful of people in my community that does it. I have encountered exactly 2 other dog owners here actively bagging after their dog. And it's really a fucking shame because not only is it unsightly, smelly and unhealthy but it also prohibits the many children who live here (and I have one of those, too) from playing in the grass. Even down by the playground, the circular play area is surrounded by grass that is peppered with dog shit.

I have complained to the management before and they have distributed flyers telling people they will be fined if they don't bag after their dogs, but it is not enforced and therefore, not heeded. I have suggested they put some bag dispensers around the complex to encourage people to use them, but it is ignored...the place is a dump in general and I understand that the last thing on their minds is dog shit...but I have to live here!! And I do have to live here because it is the only place in the area (which is one of the last good school districts in Central FL) that I can afford.

So that's my rant.

Now tell me people, do you bag after your dog? Tell me about your neighborhood and how the dog shit issue is handled. I'm curious.

We live out in the woods, and our dog clearly understands the "no pooping on the lawn" policy, so 95% of the time she does what needs to be done in the woods. It's not an issue for anyone out there.

On the rare occasion that she is being walked in town we make sure we are prepared to pick up after her, and always do so if she poops.

Funny. We have the same problem with our apartment complex. It's the only set of apartments in town that permits animals. So therefore everyone has a dog. Our little corner of the world is known as "Dog Poop Alley." The city keeps sending notices to our apartment management, indicating they will be fined if the poop is not dealt with. The apartment management sends out fliers stating that if anyone is caught not picking up after their dog, it's a $25 fine, repeat offenses mean eviction. The management has asked residents to inform them if you see any neighbors not picking up after their dogs. If you see someone and report it, that person will get a $25 fine. Yet nothing is done. Every strip of dirt, every planter, every place where there was once a green lawn is COVERED in poop. Layers upon layers of poop. It's almost comical. I should take a photograph to share.

We have a rabbit. We have to carry her to a nearby cemetery to let her hop around. Otherwise she (1) risks an attack from a dog (2) will hop through dog doo, which gets stuck in her fine undercoat, which is basically impossible to get out.

I live in the sticks, I'll scoop it or kick it off of the roads or trails; but otherwise see it as one of nature's more biodegradable substances.
I see more deer, elk, bear, mountain lion, etc crap, than dog.

Don't get me started. I pick up dog poop one or twice a day.

Especially living in the city, picking up after your dog is the responsible thing to do. Those who intentionally leave it behind are ignorant and irresponsible. I think it's the owners of small breeds that are the most guilty in my area. Maybe they think "oh, it isn't that big" and just leave it, I guess. (But I find that many small-breed owners are a breed of dog owner unto themselves.)

There are exceptions, of course: sometimes dogs poop inconspicuously, sometimes it's your own property, sometimes it's in a wooded area where it's quite unlikely anyone would walk there, etc. But there are many people who leave this stuff on sidewalks and in high-traffic park areas.

I try not to judge, but every time I see some around I tend to think, "I hope the dog isn't mistreated."

I always bag after my dog. I lived in an apt for four years and never left anything on the grass. A couple of people tried to get out of their responsibility by letting their dog do their business in the grass in front of my place. I tracked them back to their apt then called mgt who went to their apt and spoke with them.

We have a recreation trail that runs through the county I live in and there was just a story in the local paper that the trail is covered in dog crap from the winter. Sad and disgusting.

If you can't handle the responsibility of picking up after your dog, you shouldn't have one.

It's the law in our township that you have to pick up your dog's poop...plus this is a residential area and a few years ago they also implemented a "leash law" so you can't just let your dog run around like the good old days when I moved here...no leash laws, no street lights, no stupid new neighbors ;) ...ahhhh the good old days.

Right in my immediate neighborhood, a seemingly even more important/effective factor is the social pressure from all the neighbors. If you're noticed not doing the right thing, you will hear about it.

There is a city ordinance about bagging your dog's doo. I don't own a dog, but I do often take care of clients' dogs, and I bag up after those dogs. My town makes it easy, though--every public space where dogs are allowed has a poop bag dispenser. Around here people are really good about picking up dog poo. I'm surprised when I see it around these parts.

It can be kind of gross when it's still all warm, but it's got to be done.

We have a crappy neighborhood too. I don't know what the po-po do here as far as ticketing. Sometimes, the crap is too big to be a dog's, yes, that's right, some human has just dropped trou and taken a dump right on the sidewalk.

This is why, we take off our shoes before walking in our apartment.

If I had a dog, and when I had a girlfriend that had a dog, I had to pick up the crap. It doesn't feel all that good to squish it as you pick it up even with a bag. So, not interested in having a dog even if we were allowed to own one in our complex. I'm amazed at how much dog crap we have, since we're not allowed to have dogs.

I don't pick up after the dog. We don't have kids and don't run around the yard so we just rake it up as we do typical lawn stuff.
Walks are done along high tension wire line access trails. More things to worry about along those trails than dog poop as they abut large lots where there are a lot of private shooting ranges, a variety of wildlife and kamakazi dirt bike riders.

When I had a dog we would pick up after him every time.

i one of those "in the woods" people.

there is no need for me to pick up after my dog. Actually, now that i think about it, ive never even seen a pile of shit.

sort of frightening, maybe my dog has a massive pile in the woods somewhere.

Dude, I guarantee that a 200lb english mastiff leaves bigger turds then most people out there... big poo just means a big dog...



At the dog park I almost always pickup after my puppy.... the only times I havnt were in the evening when it was getting dark, and when I went back after getting a bag I couldnt find it.

On walks around the neighborhood I try to encourage him to do his business next to the greenbelts where not many people go. if he does go in a lawn I usually pick it up... but sometimes I forget a bag.

i live on a river,that is also part of a 7 km path that is easily accesible by and for anyone.

now the dog shit that piles up is fucking crazy.

there are many stations here too,that provide doggy bags for people to use to clean up after their pets.........you think anyone fucking uses them?


i could go on,but i won't...........:no:

and yes...........i clean up after my dogs.:thumbsup:

i grew up with dogs in the country; that's where they belong...

when i see someone walking a dog in the 'burbs or in the city with a plastic bag attached, i just have to chuckle inside...

my opinion, sorry...

Was it not an old dated training practice to rub the dogs face in the poo if it went in the house? Maybe they can adopt this practice for lazy owners that don't pick up?

I came home once and and found a neighbor not picking up after his dog crapped on my front lawn, he never noticed me as i was still sitting in my car. I waited until late that night and took said shit and wiped it all over his car, house door handle and everything else i could find that would piss him off.

Stupid, but it made me feel better....he asked all the other neighbors if they had seen anything but never asked me....mmmmm

I always save an extra big smile for that jackass....

Thanks everyone for your responses. It's good to know that I'm not alone with my dog shit dilemma.

And uncle phil, if all the dogs sitting in the shelters had to wait for someone from the country to come and give them a home, we'd have a lot more homeless dogs. I would pick up dog shit 10 times a day for my Simba bear if I had to. He has brought so much character to this little household. :)

My downstairs neighbor would never pick up after her dog. Even after they installed a bag dispenser right in front of our building. She would be on the phone, smoking, oblivious do the dog doing its business right next to the bag dispenser. Management would distribute notices telling tenants would be fined if caught and etc. and she would keep doing it.

Then one day I got my camera and took a picture of her and the dog, and she saw it. She then apologized and never did it again.

I really do not get what the big deal is. You're not actually touching 'the poo.' Once you get used to it, it is quite routine.

We have coyotes where I'm at and I'm never sure if crap on the ground is from a dog or a coyote.

My dogs never seem to take a crap outside of a little corner in the backyard they've turned into their bathroom. I've trained them that that is the only spot they are allowed to take a crap so no poop problems for me.

When I take our dog for a walk, I always pick up after her. I hate going on walks and finding dog crap everywhere. In our apartment complex we have four apartments. Three of us have dogs. I usually pick up our area of the yard every other day...it's cold here right now and dark! However, the neighbor closest to me will wait weeks before picking up...and she has a 100lb dog. It is disgusting. She is slowly moving him closer to my area of the yard probably in hopes I'll mistake her 100lb dog crap for my 50lb dog crap and pick it up.

I take my dog to the local beach that allows dogs to be off leash. As he spends most of his time in the water, he has learned to go before the water, and the council has kindly put bags and a bin at the end of the park thats near the beach. Everyone that uses the beach seems to do the right thing, as it costs nothing and makes the area so much nicer.

Funny story on the subject. I'm not a dog owner--I actually have three cats. A couple of summers ago, I house and dog sat for one of my co-workers. They had a one-year-old Goldendoodle, Samuel, AKA Satan. Anyways, not being a dog person, I was pretty horrified at the idea of having to pick up a big steaming pile, but knew that I had to considering my city's ordinances and the nature of the neighborhood in which they lived. The family also had a two year old who was still in diapers. So to give my hand a bit more insulation from the dog-doo, I walked him armed with baggies and a disposable diaper. I know, not eco-friendly...but it kept me from getting sick, as I'm wont to do in poop-related situations. :-)

Ever notice the ones with huge clumps of hair? Yeah, those are from the coyotes. The hair once belonged to a rabbit or a stray cat.

Always, either while on a walk or when he craps in our yard. The yard part is difficult in the winter due to snow so usually I'll take a few hours after the snow melts to wlak around the yard and pick up semi-decomposed crap piles.

am I likely to get banishment for a classified ad:

4 sale, fully programable laser dog poop zapper. Never have to pick up the poop again!

http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g2...pper-0-nwf.jpg

^ I think this beats Divine's approach in Pink Flamingos

you have no idea how I have to rewatch that Pink Flamingos scene again and again in my head everytime I walk my dog...just the once was enough. *gag*

I've found that it has a lot to doo with what type of hood you live in.

There are parts of any big city, medium city, etc... where people toss any and all types of garbage on the streets and sidewalks as well.

I Pick up the dog poop that falls from the end of the leash I'm holding,
and a few others,if I'm feeling generous.

Edit: Even when I lived in a town of 1200 people, my favorite fishing spot,
I would have to spend about 10 to 15 minutes with a garbage bag picking up other peoples
trash so I could enjoy my fishing experience.

Some of it was left behind by big city folk, some by our local small town people.

The youngsters just left to walk our dogs, bags in hand. Seems we can't traverse a city block without stopping for a little clean up.
Everyone in our neighborhood has a dog or two, it seems. Most everyone is conscientious on this score.

Most people in my city, from what I can tell, scoop up dog shit.
Except my damn neighbour. 20 years of shitting on the lawn, right up against my driveway. Its like he trains his dogs to shit there. Every morning I have to tiptoe around to my car.
Asshole.

I think that might be a part of the reason I hate dogs.
That and they scare the everloving hell out of me. They always attack me. Now I have a genuine fear to the creatures.
So, there's no way I would own a dog, or pick up its poop. The thought alone makes me gag.

....okay okay, so I'm not an animal lover. We all can't be, ok?

People who don't pick up their dogshit deserve to have it thrown at them as they are walking away from it.

..

The people who don't pick up after their dogs are often the same ones shouting for no-leash laws, dogs in more public places, etc.
Well if people watch a bunch of dog owners walk noisy, hairy, occasionally cute, but sometimes scary animals around just shitting everywhere on public property, and not cleaning up after them, they're gonna be less sympathetic to their cause.
Last time I was in Paris, around 4 years ago, it was poop hell. Now the fines are pretty big, but I'm not sure how well it's enforced, but I've heard it's definitely less of a problem now.
In NYC it's rare for me to find random poop, but in Westchester county it happens on the sides of high traffic sidewalks, where it can annoying when you'd rather walk on the grass than on the sidewalk.

I've always made sure that our dogs always poop in our yard, and nowhere else. There's only been one time in the past 10 years that one of my dogs pooped while on a walk, and yes - I went back with a bag and picked it up.

Our neighborhood has poop-bag stations throughout, and piles of dog poop along every sidewalk . . . . . . .

We have a small back yard, and one of our dogs has started showing an unusual interest in her poop (as all dog owners know - so many of them do, because they can smell the unprocessed nutrients), so to stop any problems before they start, we pick up after the dogs as soon as they're done. Buying latex gloves wholesale is a godsend. I know it means a lot more plastic bags ending up in a landfill, but ya gotta draw the line somewhere . . . .

Luckily, we live in the desert, so picking it up off of gravel is much easier than grass (I remember those awful days in Houston, picking up after two dogs after a week of rain storms !! :eek:)

ps - if you ever have a neighbor whose dog seems to always pick your yard to poop in, here's a sure-fire cure. Get a plastic spoon and go out and coat it with some peanut butter. The next time that dog comes along, he'll take it with him. Once the owner sees that, they sometimes start picking up after their dogs. At the very least, he'll avoid walking by your house :)

I'm not sure if I understand this correctly, but nonetheless, it doesn't seem like a good idea. It could make a stupid dog bite, break, and swallow sharp shards of peanut butter flavored plastic. Very bad.

Back when I lived in Calgary I used to ride my bike in Fish Creek Provincial Park (huge park that runs across the entire south section of the city). It was a beautiful park that had a creek snaking through it, with many foot paths and walking trails. They would get littered with shit when the weather warmed up, and when the snow melted. It was absolutely disgusting.

Then in another area of the city there is a river that runs through a valley, with a nice little beach where people would gather, people would tan and children would play. There were inflatable boats floating down the river all the time. Well one year there was so much shit at Sandy Beach that they had to close the entire site down to the public. So much dog shit that they closed it!!! They said that it was so unsanitary and it was leaking into the water that they could no longer keep it open.

Way to go you fucking jerks.

okay - ya got me.

Use the plastic spoon to coat the dog shit with peanut butter. :)

Ooooh. I didn't quite get it indeed. Yeah, that's definitely not a bad idea, and not nearly as dangerous as I thought. :)

I understand that dog owners live in many different settings and that sometimes picking up after your dog is less of a necessity in some situations than in others. I certainly have no dismay to express for dog owners who do not live around a lot of other dog owners or who live in rural settings or have backyards where they let their dogs out. This is more an apartment thing, but I think it goes for the city dogs, as well.

The apartment complex I live in is fairly large and like most complexes, the grassy areas are small and limited. Additionally, there are A LOT of dog owners here because, like genuinegirly, it is one of the few places in the area that allows pets. (of course, they are very lax on their breed restrictions as well, but that's another issue)

So I think the level of responsibility to clean up after your pet varies with the situation you are living in and primarily depends on whether it is rude and an offense to someone else NOT to do it. And this is what gets to me personally, the rudeness and lack of consideration for others. This is what gets to me.

I bag when I walk/run Jack or take him to the dog park. He poops freely in the back yard and I clean it up periodically.