Disappointing dog poo behaviour but what is the norm now?

[tkdrift]

I'm not long back from a dog walk with a good friend of mine who I haven't seen in some time. She has acquired a dog in the intervening period but is an experienced dog owner. We walked through woodland, her dog pooped next to the path and she kicked it into the undergrowth.

I did 😮face and she shrugged and said "It'll break down". This is now the fourth person I've walked with in recent months whose dog has pooped somewhere and rather than pick it up they've either kicked it to the side (bleurgh) or covered it up with leaves etc.

These are otherwise genuinely decent, sensible people whose judgment in most other areas I trust and respect.

What am I missing? Is this how many dog owners feel? For context I have a dog and unless she has pooped in a part of the undergrowth that I can't get to (rare - she's a public pooper) I will always pick it up. Always. Woodland or not.

I've challenged my friends gently by saying "But there are so many dogs and there's so much poo." but they just don't seem to get it. Children love to run around in woodland and often don't stick to the paths. But if everyone with a dog not only left it there but then went on to hide it... Ugh...

I don't know. I was really disappointed. But as I said it's happened a few times now. Is this generally what dog owners do these days? How are people justifying it to themselves?

The law needs to be changed regarding cats

I can think of many other things I would rather our politicians worked on!

@Janedoe82

its not up to you whether kids play in ditches or not, there's no should about it. A dog would be in the same place as your dog, so why shouldn't they be there?

if you don't want poop pick, stop your dog going in ditches. See it's not complicated!!

of course you're being lazy.

Flicking it into the woods has long been acceptable tbh - as long as it's far off the path.

That being said, I pick my dogs shit up. I also toss cat shit back into my neighbours garden - and I always have done. So I'm pretty hot on people being responsible owners.

Wise up! animals poo in all kinds of places! its a hazard when you go into the countryside! Are farmers out lifting cow poo? of course they aren't. Can tell a lot of you don't come from rural communities.

I’m a dog owner and I think it’s gross. Like maybe if you were way, way off the path in some deserted moorland and somewhere so inaccessible that a kid wouldn't walk there then possibly. But let’s face it 99.9% of the time you’re not in such a situation.

dog poo is different to rabbit poo. Rabbit poo doesn’t stink like dog shit. I accept fox poo may be similar but there’s a lot less foxes.

And as for the person who said they cover it up….i think that’s worse…..if you’re going to be too lazy to pick it up at least let people see it so they can avoid it.

theres dog shit all over the place in the fields near me. I stand in dog shit most weeks. And my dog does too!

Maybe we do maybe we don't but other people should not have to deal with your domestic animal poo

But there's a difference. Cows are herbivores and their poo is actively good for the environment.

Carnivore poo typically contains pathogens and is bad for the environment.

I don't know any agri farmer who fertilises with dog poo. But maybe that's because I'm a townie?

I grew up on a farm. There’s a world of difference in between a carnivore’s poo and a herbivore’s poo. The farm near me has signs saying please pick up dog poo as it contains pathogens which can harm farm animals and wildlife. I don’t know how true that is but that’s a farmer which believes it.

https://www.outdooraccess-scotland.scot/sites/default/files/2018-09/Risk%20of%20the%20spread%20of%20disease%20in%20livestock%20from%20dog%20faeces%20-%20Briefing%20note%20for%20Access%20Authorities.pdf

here you go, dog poo causes abortions in cattle.

and cause neurological disease and death in sheep

Stick it and flick it is apparently outdated advice

People often remember the stick it and flick it method advocated by the Forestry England and some MPs several years ago, but this advice is outdated and not in keeping with current research. In 2022, we reached out to the Forestry England to clarify their advice and they said the following:
"I can confirm that Forestry England no longer promotes the stick and flick message and have aligned our message to match the Countryside Code published on the gov.uk website. We are aware that there will be historic references to stick and flick but we are no longer advocating this and will look at how we can publish and promote our current advice to ‘bag and bin’ dog waste."

Water pollution
One of the biggest issues is water pollution. When it rains, dog poop can be washed into nearby bodies of water, like streams, rivers, and lakes. This can introduce harmful bacteria, viruses, and parasites into these ecosystems, which can cause harm to aquatic life and even make humans sick if they come into contact with the contaminated water. In fact the Environmental Protection Agency say “2 to 3 days of droppings from a population of 100 dogs contribute enough bacteria, nitrogen and phosphorus to temporarily close a bay to swimming and shellfishing.”

Loss of biodiversity & habitat degradation
Due to their high protein diet, dog poop is exceptionally high in nutrients, such as nitrogen and phosphorus. Which sounds like a good thing, right? Well not so fast. While nutrients are essential for plant growth, most ecosystems are naturally low nutrient environments so an excess can cause an imbalance in the ecosystem, leading to loss of biodiversity. In fact if left on the ground, these nutrients quickly reach levels that would be illegal on farmland. They can also lead to the growth of harmful algae blooms and the depletion of oxygen in waterways, which can suffocate aquatic life. Previous research has found that high nutrient levels can persist even three years after dogs are banned from nature reserves and can therefore pose serious long-term risks to wildlife.

Toxic to insects & our wider ecosystems
To date, relatively little attention has been given to the impact of human and animal medicines in our environment. However, there is an emerging body of research to show that these medicines can be astonishingly toxic to other insects, such as bees. For example, two common flea treatments used in dogs have been found in highly toxic quantities in UK rivers, far exceeding safe limits. Many other medicines and parasite treatments are excreted into the faeces, sometimes in their active forms, and may have the potential to kill insects and aquatic life, leading to wider impacts on our ecosystems.

I can assure you it is NOT more acceptable in a rural area in the UK.
(Rather annoyed at the amount of poo the dog walkers leave right outside our gate - we didn't used to live in much of a dog walking area, but pandemic walking has discovered our area, sadly)

Apologies @Ariela , I wasn't recommending it and thank you for clarifying.

I guess that's my point really. There seems to be much evidence that dog poo is harmful to the environment so the "leaving it to break down" argument doesn't stand up to scrutiny. I guess I instinctively knew that. Hundreds of domestic dogs pooing on heathland is not "back to nature", it's pollution.

But it's eye opening to me that so many otherwise sensible people don't seem to agree with that.

It's almost as if science doesn't matter anymore.

Dogs aren't carnivorous they are omnivorous.

well it has to break down somewhere!

Do you think the difference in definition makes their poo any less polluting?

Stick and flick is no longer promoted generally. Flicking dog waste into the environment spreads bacteria and parasites, contaminates soil and water sources and disrupts ecosystems. It's hazardous to other animals and humans. Plus, the nutrients in dog waste (Nitrogen and Phosphorus) increases the nutrient levels in the soil, causing problems for native wildflower meadows and woodlands, where plants need low-nutrient soils (and end up getting out-competed by grasses etc). It's disgusting and lazy to not pick up dog poo. I've always had dogs and like any responsible owner, I pick up after my dog.

My mum's dog used to stick his bum in the hedge to poo, it was amazing. I hardly ever had to pick up after him.

I have been known to carry my dog's poo in my pocket for miles on country walks if she has done it on a footpath, but it was in the undergrowth I wouldn't bother.

It’s the meat eating which causes the issues so no different between an omnivore and carnivore from that respect. Unlike herbivore cows, rabbits, etc.

I remember as a kid cycling a few miles out into the countryside to explore woodland, building a camp, grabbing loads of long grass to cover it with, only to put my hand in a load of dog shit. I tried my best to clean it up, could smell it no my hands all the way home.

Don't forget many dogs love to make a meal of another dog's crap. Lovely. Thank God for slugs, because without them the local paths would just be full of it. I'd rather walk around human poo than dog shit.

Refer everyone to William Shakespeare's dad who knew how to deal with this.

Isn’t it the law now to always carry a shit bag?

Agree with so many others, plus without being too graphic by kicking it she's getting shit on her shoe... then into her car/house/local shop.

There's been many posts on my local Facebook about dogs picking up gastro things because of others not picking up after their dogs.

It's just utterly disgusting.

Agree about cat poo but I think round here they all use my bloody garden as a litter tray rather than the street

If it goes in waste bins locally it gets burned for energy. All black bin waste gets burned. I don’t know how harmful that is for the environment but it’s not going to landfill and breaking down there.