A Poopy Situation

Tonight's post has been prompted by the following little scenario:  As I was walking Reg & Reese tonight we came upon a lady walking her three small dogs.  Reg stopped to do his business about half way down the block from them, I bent down to pick up his poop and as I stood back up, one of the small dogs was doing his business about 10 feet from us, when he finished the lady just keep walking right along...I passed her and very nonchalantly handed her a poop bag said "here you go".  [Note:  My apartment complex has doggie stations with well-stocked bags, so nobody has any excuse for not picking up after their dogs]

Yes, I am that person.  Why, you ask?  Because in what part of the adoption process did you think your dog came with their own little poop fairy who cleans up after them every time they need to relieve themselves?  Picking up poop is part of owning a dog--your dog gives you unconditional love, joy, and entertainment...you give them food, water, shelter, a loving home, and you pick up after them.  It's part of the responsibility of owning a dog, not to mention that here in Denver, it's the law (which is also the case in many other municipalities), and failure to comply if caught in the act results in a fine!

We have all done our fair share of stepping in dog poop.  Scrapping it off the bottom of your shoe is not fun, it's messy, and it's rather disgusting.

If that's not enough for you, consider these Poopy Facts:

• "The US pet dog population reached a record 78.2 million in 2010, and at 3/4 lbs. per day on average, waste production per dog comes to 274 lbs./year--or 10.9 million tons dropped on the landscape" (The Wall Street Journel) 
• Just think what would it would be like if nobody picked up after their furbabies...
• Dog waste is RAW SEWAGE and the only bacteria source that people willingly leave on the ground--GROSS!
• "Unlike wild-animal feces, dog poop does not biodegrade quickly" (The Denver Post)
• Not picking up after your dog poses a public health hazard:
• Pet feces carry bacteria, viruses, and parasites into waterways that can cause unpleasant infections such as giardia and E. coli
• More indirectly, the excrement also releases nutrients into the water that can feed algae, kill marine life, contaminate beaches, lakes, and rivers, and send unlucky swimmers home with bouts of diarrhea or hives.

Because of contamination as well as smell and mess, dog waste is highly offensive to many people in the community (especially those who don't own dogs).  This often results in dogs being banned from different areas and locations.  Since your dog did not in fact come with their own little poop fairy, they can't clean up after themselves, which makes this issue a people problem rather than a dog problem.  It's easy to enact "no dogs allowed" rules, and then responsible dog owners who do clean up after their pups suffer right along with the ones who don't!