Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think people should pick up their dogs poop even in their own garde

50 replies

LadyGardener1 · 13/05/2015 13:02

Dp and I are gardeners. Its astounding the amount of customers who think it is OK to leave their dogs poo for us to go over with the mower and we inevitably stand in it too. We use our car for transport so then have pooey mower in the car. In DPS old job they had to go round any poo so left little tufts of grass everywhere, but we need the custom so can't afford to lose customers.

OP posts:
Original poster
LadyGardener1 · 13/05/2015 15:10

BTW I have a dog and do pick up duty every other day if I don't see her do it.

OP posts:
TheWitTank · 13/05/2015 15:14

Just change your contract like others have said up thread. All gardens must be clear of excrement before gardening works are carried out. Clearance work carried out by company will be charged additionally.
It is grim though. I have two dogs and clean the garden as needed daily at least. Can't stand the thought of my garden covered in dog poo. It takes me about 2 minutes to check and clear daily.

holdonaminute · 13/05/2015 15:17

Really cant believe anyone would think it was ok to get someone to cut your grass and leave it full of poop !!! I mean if you want to sit there amongst it yourself then that's your lookout but to impose it on someone else -bleugh, disgusting!

I have 2 dogs and a gardener. Pick up every day and extra check on gardening days. I would be really embarrasssed if i missed one by accident and it got hit by the mower although my gardener is lovely so probably wouldnt say anything

Momagain1 · 13/05/2015 17:10

This is why i have indoor cats. All poo located in one easy yo clean pan, nothing to irritate my gardener if I had one.

Collaborate · 13/05/2015 17:36

Have a scale of tariffs for poo collection. Charge, say, £1 for every 100g.

Oldraver · 13/05/2015 20:01

Do people really leave poo in their garden and only collect it on certain days ?

Revolting

BMW6 · 13/05/2015 20:06

Why would you want to employ a gardener to make your garden lovely if it is covered in shit to start with Confused

Bonkers and minging.

NonDom · 13/05/2015 20:13

My dog does 2 poos a day, and I do a pick up each day, and always do a sweep before mowing (twice a week).

How about just mowing around the poo? The owner will soon get the message.

derxa · 13/05/2015 20:13

I feel your pain. Absolutely disgusting.

EponasWildDaughter · 13/05/2015 20:19

Definitely start putting it in the contract that the area to be worked on needs to be poo free. How much custom will you really lose? I imagine most gardeners would expect the same. (and if not let them have the shitty gardens).

When i owned dogs i made sure i had a small part of any patio or hard standing fenced off for the pooing. The dogs knew that was their area to go, and would only poo there. Like a litter tray almost. SO much easier and cleaner to pick poo off concrete, quick blast with a hose and a splash of disinfectant daily. Almost impossible to get poo off grass properly.

oddfodd · 13/05/2015 20:31

My neighbour where I used to live never picked up the poo. It absolutely stank outside our houses. It was horrible.

I agree that you should get it written into the contract. Or add time for cleaning it up. I'm sure they'd do it if you charge £15/hour (which I hope you do - at least)

ScrambedEggAndToast · 13/05/2015 20:39

Definitely. I absolutely love cleaning my son's studded football boots after he's stepped in a steaming dog turd. Not Hmm

CornChips · 13/05/2015 20:44

On the subject of warm dog poo..... one of my very elderly feisty, funny ex-neighbours.... in her late 80s.... had a huge Alsatian and in winter used to call his poop 'hand-warmers'. Grin

I do prefer dog poo pickup day after a decent frost it has to be said.

ADishBestEatenCold · 13/05/2015 21:33

Awful to have poo mushed with and into a mower (worse to have it spliced into dozens of projectile parts, by a strimmer) and you are not BU not to want that to happen, but perhaps you will have to include in your contract that grass is cleared of poo by your clients, ahead of cutting.

Incidentally, I note you mentioned how difficult it is to spot poo in long grass. That is so true ... could you perhaps agree with clients to cut more often? I have dogs and poo-pick my garden three or four times a week so things are clear for the gardener's visits, however if those visits are too far apart and the grass gets too long, it is more difficult to poo-pick properly.

minesapintofwine · 13/05/2015 22:45

I'm quite surprised how many people have 'poo pick up days'. Imo every day is a pick up day. I scan several times a day and pick up what I find . In fairness my garden is not acres and my dog poos on walks so not hundreds of times a day in the garden. Still...how can you just leave it there? It's especially minging when you know a gardener is coming. I think you definately need to put it in your contract that gardens are cleaned up of poo first. That's just good sense. Poor you Sad

MidniteScribbler · 13/05/2015 23:02

I normally do mine everyday, although occasionally I may extend to two days during particularly busy periods. I always make sure I do a last minute poo pickup on gardener days though. I can't imagine ever leaving it for someone else to have to pick up (although once DS is old enough it may become one of his jobs lol!). I have a long handled pooper scooper, so no bending over and no touching. I also have two 'doogy loo' composting in the ground toilets to dispose of it, so it doesn't even have to go in the bin.

Summerisle1 · 13/05/2015 23:29

One customer has 2 or 3 shitzhus

And I'll bet they've left shitz all over the garden...

Seriously, not cleaning dog poo out of your garden is just plain wrong. It's wrong even if you do your own gardening but unforgivable if you expect someone else to come and mow poo-ridden lawn. I clear our grass daily and take particular care to give it another check over on gardener days.

ender · 13/05/2015 23:38

Surprised at those who only pick up dog poo on certain days Shock. It must attract the flies and smell.
I've got 2 large dogs and stand by them with bag waiting while they go. Also keep full watering can to rinse after pees and poos. Keeps the lawn looking lovely and no horrible smells when weather gets warm.

Collaborate · 13/05/2015 23:42

When i owned dogs i made sure i had a small part of any patio or hard standing fenced off for the pooing. The dogs knew that was their area to go, and would only poo there. Like a litter tray almost. SO much easier and cleaner to pick poo off concrete, quick blast with a hose and a splash of disinfectant daily. Almost impossible to get poo off grass properly.

This is what my lovely pup now does. If the poo stays more than 1 minute before being scooped up, it's a rarity.

whatnoww · 13/05/2015 23:59

Redone a customers back yard the other week, all flags and flower beds and I had to make path with bits of wood to cross without getting covered in the stuff! Wasnt my finest moment but no sight of embarrassment at all.

Worst thing was when we came back after a weekend off there were about 8 shits on the plastic sheeting we had left covering what we had done.

I feel your pain op, yadnbu!

MiaowTheCat · 14/05/2015 07:54

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Collaborate · 14/05/2015 09:11

We had a tree taken down that half grew over the neighbour's back garden. They have 2 dogs. The tree fellers spend at least 10 minutes picking up the dog crap (in their garden, I hasten to add). I was Shock. They have 2 kids who play in the garden too.

DowntownFunk · 14/05/2015 09:22

Charge extra for poo clearing. Definitely.

A pal of mine phoned the authorities about their neighbours not picking up their own dogs' poo in their own walled garden. The smell was getting to them and they had an ongoing feud with the neighbour anyway.

This was a private residence in a very naice street.

The bloke from the council/SSPCA (not sure who she phoned) was there twice that day. Once to inspect and the second time to make sure the poo was cleared.

Pispcina · 14/05/2015 09:31

Our neighbours didn't seem to pick it up all winter. They have now, I think - but it explains why they also never mow their lawn.

Gardens are big enough not to notice the smell, so far, but we do get a load of weeds coming through under the fence, which really pisses me off.

Their garden is a tip, and they don't seem to care at all.

We have neither a cat nor a dog, though a lot of cats seem to use our flower beds as a loo. Not normally on the lawn though? (next door's dog used to come through and shit on the lawn, before we moved in, and they never offered to pick it up, then we put up a really solid fence and that solved the problem).

Our chickens poo on the grass. It's fairly innocuous though.

CornChips · 14/05/2015 13:25

I was one up thread who does poo pickup days... but generally because the dogs are walked first thing and usually do their poo then (which is picked up and binned OBVIOUSLY). So doing it three times a week- there usually is not alot of poo about anyway. 2 dogs, I might pick up a couple of poos maybe.

New posts on this thread. Refresh page