Keeping Those City Streets Clean! 5 Reasons Proper Pet Waste Disposal Matters

  Posted on October 3, 2017  by Joy of Living  No comments

Picking up after your dog is no fun, but failing to do proper pet waste disposal creates many problems.

Before enactment of a 1978 law making it mandatory for dog owners in NYC to clean up after their pets, nearly 40 million lbs. of dog excrement was deposited on the streets every year. Disgusting!

Pet waste disposal is one of those topics that every pet owner must deal with but no one likes to talk about. The fact is that the majority of community and neighborhood pet problems result from the inappropriate handling of pet waste.

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Here are five of the most important reasons proper pet waste disposal is so important:

Disease Control

There are several very common diseases that can be transmitted to dogs, cats and people through feces. These include giardia, roundworms, salmonella, and Ecoli. Dogs can spread or contract parvovirus or coronavirus through infected feces.

My dogs have contracted giardia on two separate occasions because of pet waste left on the ground.  Trust me when I tell you giardia is very unpleasant for both dog and owner!

Make your Yard more Useable

Nobody likes to walk in a yard full of  “doggie land mines.” If you and your family don’t use your yard because of the dog waste, you’re wasting one of your home’s biggest assets. In addition, the pets will get less interactive exercise and suffer as well.

Once or twice a day ‘scooping’ your yard with a pet waste shovel will only take a couple of minutes and make it a place where everyone enjoys spending time.

If the idea of poop scooping the yard isn’t very appealing, there are services available for hire that specialize in  pet waste disposal.

Fly Control

Flies are drawn to feces will consume and lay eggs in it. Then the flies will come into the house and spread disease as they land on counters and your food. Yuck!

Responsible Pet Ownership

There are probably fewer things that aggravate neighbors more than a dog that ‘goes’ in their yard, and then the poop isn’t picked up. My next door neighbor would stand and watch his dog poop in my yard and not pick it up.  I solved the problem by shoveling the poop and throwing it back into his yard.  He got the hint pretty quickly.

If you are in a park or neighborhood, pick it up with a pet waste disposal bag.  Bags can be ordered in bulk, and several come with bag dispensers that attach to your dog’s leash.

Many parks now have pet waste disposal bags and trash cans available along walking paths.  With bags and a place to dispose of them so convenient, there isn’t an excuse for not picking up after your dog.

Preventing Stool Eating

Dogs evolved as carnivore/scavengers and feces were considered fair game in lean times. To prevent this occasional indiscretion from becoming a life-long habit, clean up feces as soon as possible, especially in young dogs where the problem is most prevalent.

At the first sign of this bad habit, try spraying the stool with a mixture of half water/half vinegar.  This mixture alters the scent so it’s less appealing to dogs.

Clean up after your dog!  Can you imagine what your environment would look like if you never did?