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?

There is no justification! It's disgusting, yes I am the person who shouts at people who don't do it. It is the owner of the dogs responsibility to clean up after it. Simple. Don't know why people think it's so hard. Bag it and bin it.

Our forestry commission recommends flicking it into the undergrowth when you're out in the woods

just pick it up, it is bad for the environment and ruins the enjoyment for everyone

i think the forestry commission has had a rethink

Some walks have signs saying ‘stick and flick’, so flick the poo off the path with a stick, it’s to reduce waste as many poo bags aren’t biodegradable.

If you're in England that's not true. The Forestry Commission is now called Forestry England and this is their advice:

Your Forest Dog Code

Forests are great places to walk with your dog. To help you get the best out of your walk please follow our dog walking guide.

Keep your dog close and in sight
• use a lead if they don’t always return when called.
• prevent your dog from going up to (or chasing) people or animals.

Always clean up your dog’s poo

• bag it and bin it, or take it home with you.
• any public or household general waste bin is fine for bagged dog poo.

https://www.forestryengland.uk/dog-code

There are comments upthread that link to evidence about why this is no longer sound advice.

Dog poo is considered a pollutant and a hazard to wildlife.

My understanding is that it was only ever suggested as a pragmatic solution to counter dog owners hanging plastic bags from trees. Would never have needed to be suggested if people bagged up and disposed of poo properly in the first place.

Or they’ve got diarrhoea! Try picking that up with a bag lol

Oh yes I agree but it is still recommended in some areas.

Which areas recommend stick and flick over picking it up and taking it home or putting it in a dog bin? It’s not something I’ve ever come across as a recommended alternative.

Diarrhoea is tricky obviously, but you should still try - cover with soil or leaves and try and pick up as much as you can. It means there’s bad gut bacteria which isn’t ideal for other animals.

Many think it is OK in woodlands because many other animals poo there anyway. However dog poo is very different due to their diets and is actually becoming a huge problem to ecosystems along with their urine.

We bag it up but stick and flick into undergrowth sometimes. We have signs telling you to do just that in local woodlands.

I nearly always pick up my dog's mess, unless he happens to go in a patch of uncut nettles; l think commercial dog food probably contains a lot more unsafe things than manufacturers are letting on, and that is what is why it is unsafe in the soil now. I have always had mine on a BARF diet though so not so much of an issue for me.

They have signs up saying ‘we recommend you don’t pick your dog poo up, stick and flick instead’?

They don’t say ‘don’t pick it up’, but they do have an illustration of sticking and flicking.

So the tried and tested method of picking up your dog’s poo and putting it on a bin somewhere still stands. Sticking and flicking is really only to remind the hard of thinking not to leave it in the middle of the path.

It’s the humans that find it Acceptable to poo in the woods that get me.

But been a dog owner for roughly 20years and always try to pick it up if I can get/ find it in the woods

i wish people would pick up, my own dog loves the extra breakfast of another dog's poo

As another poster said dog ownership and breeding needs to be controlled somehow as it is getting out of hand. Far too many lazy entitled dog owners who can’t be bothered to looks after them, train them, pick up after them, leave them for hours or pay someone else to look after them. I honestly think if it was made as inconvenient and as expensive as possible it would weed out the lazy irresponsible owners and leave the people who have the time and are responsible pet owners, you just need to see the amount of posts on here from people who realise after getting one the hard work required for the next 12 years or so but can’t see past the instant gratification stage.

I don’t have a dog as I don’t have time for one and don’t particularly want accidents in my house or to have to pick up dog muck and I also believe anyone wanting a cat should be made to cat proof to keep their pet on their own property

i also knew next to no one with dogs growing up, mainly retired or farmers that was it

I have only picked up dog poo on a few occasions in my life and the feeling of warm faeces through a plastic bag makes me heave. It's a top reason as to why I don't have a dog. Choose to have a dog, pick up after it.

For those posters who - for whatever reason - don't clean up after their dogs, I wonder what they do in their own gardens...

Absolutely this. I have a dog and whilst picking up after it is not the nicest job in the world I have to do it because it’s part and parcel of owning a dog. If you can’t/won’t do it then a dog is not the pet for you.

In my experience, that's exactly how the vast majority of dog owners think and behave. They are, typically, narcissistic, self-centered, ignorant twats. A bit like Church of England vicars, in other words.

Nope, no, no way! That's not at all acceptable and what a terrible attitude to have if people think that's ok!! I lift it no matter where my dogs go unless it is physically impossible to get to where he has been!! Being a dog owner, I get so angry when I see the amount of it just being left lying! Disgusting!!

It's absolutely rife where I live. If it rains it's a nightmare traversing the slippery muck all over the pavements, and the pong is unreal! I think people are just too tight to buy the little bags myself. If you're that broke, here's a life hack for you: save all the plastic your fruit and veg comes in, I use them when removing solid stools from my cat's tray. - works a treat.
You can laugh, but it's basically an epidemic of stinking, gross, anti-social behaviour. And I'm sick of dog owners saying things to me like " I'll come back for that later" when they cop ive seen their dog take a big one as I pass by. Come off it, no you bloody well won't! Fines have to be increased to £1000 per plop, people will soon stock up on bags.