Dog poo doesn’t need to be picked up in long grass

[LittleSheps]

Walking with my 3 month old in the pram in my local park this morning and see two dogs bounding a little way ahead of me, off leads. Cautiously slow down as they were big dogs and didn’t want them to run into the pram. See one of the dogs take a dump in the “wild” area to the side of the path and then see it run towards its owner. So I ask the guy “Is that your dog?” He says yes and I tell him I just saw it poo and please would he clean it up. He enquired as to where exactly so I point and he says “I don’t need to pick it up there, it’s the long grass, that’s why they don’t cut it”. To which I tell him I see plenty of kids (including my 3 year old) run in and out of these areas - lots of bushes, longer grass to the main park, trees, a lot more fun! and he should pick it up so that no one treads/falls in it. He said no and got a bit shirty with me saying if it bothered me that much I should pick it up. I should probably have just sighed and walked away at this point but his attitude really irked me so I told him that if he was a responsible dog owner he would carry bags and clean it up and if I had a dog and it had done a shit in the park I absolutely would but it’s his dog, his responsibility and that he shouldn’t ruin it for everyone else just because he isn’t keeping an eye on his dog and can’t be arsed. He then told me to shut up, waved his bags at me and walked away.

So was I being reasonable in asking him to pick his dog shit up or was he right about not needing to pick it up “because it’s in the long grass” and I was being unreasonable and should’ve minded my own business? I am not a dog owner so prepared to be told I don’t know the etiquette.

[Mittens030869]

I particularly hate it when people let their dogs shit on the pavement. Especially during the school run, I have to constantly watch out for the stuff and make sure my DDs don't step in it. Revolting and so selfish.

[EmbarrassedUser]

Aarghhh 😡😡 Despise people like this. As I’ve got older I’ve become far more confident about calling people out though and you were definitely right to. The last one I called out was a young lad who had it headphones on. He wasn’t watching his dog and it shit behind him but in front of us. We told him and, to his credit, he picked it up without a fuss. However, he wouldn’t have picked it up if we hadn’t told him to. I did my best Paddington Bear Stare though before thanking him 😂

[onceuponatimer]

YANBU. He is disgusting. I hate it when dog owners don't pick up their dog's poo. Selfish, revolting and lazy.

[SpillTheTeaa]

He's just a dirty pig. Seems a bit like the lady that walks a dog near our house. She let it shit on the end of my pathway. I went mental. She actually walked off! I made her come back and clear it up. It was right bang centre at the end of the path. I couldn't walk around it to get out my house. Dirty bitch.

[bellabasset]

There are always threads on fb about this locally. Check on your LA website the rules about reporting, there is a form on ours to do this. A photo of a woman leaving dog rubbish on a local fb page made the papers. She was using the ferry to Padstow

Also there is often a bag it and bin it slogan quoted. That means binning it in a bin with a bag so it is double bagged for collection. I keep any used cat litter bagged in a separate bag as it stinks the bin out otherwise.

[mathanxiety]

Not only is it horrible to step in, it attracts rats to parks (and anywhere else it is left out, including back gardens).

[Heroicasymphony]

@UncleFoster yes agree with this. When the waste breaks down, it doesn't vanish. It goes into the earth and ultimately into the water. It's not ok even if a child goes nowhere near it: there are plenty of other living creatures that can be damaged by it.

Just imagine if you're part of a colony of ladybirds and some massive stupid fucking dog - that isn't part of the ecosystem but is there because a human wants to own an animal - empties its arse all over you. Grim.

[UncleFoster]

Children definitely play in brambles, i still have scars on my arms to prove it!

[UncleFoster]

Dog poo is a massive pollutant of our waterways. Its also unsafe for farm animals and wildlife, not to mention a child which might fall in it. Even if your in deep woodland someone could still tread in it, it can still pollute our rivers. Id rather it was on the path tbh at least then I'll see it.

In my eyes its completely unacceptable to not pick up your dogs shit anywhere. Unless its genuinly unsafe for you to pick it up. Its lazy and quite frankly disgusting to leave it.

If you are concerned about the environmental impact of dog shit bags you probably shouldnt have got a dog.

[XingMing]

I pick up everytime my dog poos on a footpath or a trail marked for walkers but out in woodland where children would not play because of brambles, brash and rough ground I don't. But dog is NEVER EVER walked in a park or close to a playground. We walk in a forest mostly and the undergrowth is mainly bracken, brambles and nettles. She sticks her bum in a hedge to defecate.

[AdoptedBumpkin]

Surely long grass makes no difference?

[PotholeParadise]

Whatever the virtues of 'stick-and-flick' in genuine woodland environments, it seems to me that 'woodland' has become a moveable feast.

Some are now taking 'woodland' to mean 'anywhere that isn't a concrete shopping precinct', and flicking it aside into places that definitely have regular human footfall.

[Mittens030869]

I have a friend who takes her 3 DDs (friends of my DDs) with her when she walks her dog. She always takes extra poo bags with her and cleans up other the poo from other people's dogs so that her dog and DDs don't step in it. It's completely gross and anti-social not to, and unfair mostly on responsible dog owners.

[CaveyWavey]

@Lockheart I was referring to the people that ride horses at our local country park. There are designated paths/tracks for them to use which I avoid. There are a few that do not respect this and use the paths/tracks that they are not allowed to use. Of course I'm not expecting them to get off the horse with a shovel. Just stick to their designated areas at the country park.

I am well aware of the benefits for the garden. It's fantastic stuff, unlike dog s**t which is why I pick up after my two

[unlikelytobe]

@Heroicasymphony

Oooh, thanks for that. I'll have a look.

I'm miles from a bin on most of my long walks as I live in the countryside - I need a solution!

[midnightstar66]

Dogs off leads are a total nuisance and even worse at the moment. We've had our days spoiled 2 days in a row this week while my well behaved dog remained on a lead. One Labrador stole our food from our bbq another attacked my friends dog who was tied up in the shade next to us and yesterday a large long coated and very wet dog ran right across our picnic blanket several times clearly scavenging for food. The owners just laugh: Off lead dogs also provide a convenient excuse not to see the dogs doing a poo I've noticed lately. YANBU but not surprised by his attitude.

[JonHammIsMyJamm]

Those asking about what I do about bagged poo at the beginning of a walk, I take it with me and dispose of it in the nearest appropriate bin. Same as I do with any other litter. It isn’t the highlight of dog ownership but so what? It’s better than leaving stinking, steaming heaps everywhere for others to ‘enjoy’.

[Heroicasymphony]

@unlikelytobe there are all sorts of gizmos you can get now to stash the poo in that clip to your dog lead. Some examples here:

www.dogviously.com/best-dog-poop-bag-holders-dispensers/

[TheLadyAnneNeville]

He should always pick up. Kids playing in the grass etc.

[unlikelytobe]

So this thread features people who say pick it up anywhere and those who say it depends on where it's left e.g woodland, under hedges etc. might be acceptable. Surely no-one is saying it's OK on a pavement or in a park, long grass or not.

I think some people just don't like having to carry it around too long and especially if you're out in the countryside on a long walk it can be hours. What are the zero tolerance people doing then - putting it in their backpacks? I'm not joking here, I'd like to know. If I'm out walking in fields etc for ages and my dog does 3 poos during that time is it wrong to leave it under the brambles? Any practical advice?

[CuriousaboutSamphire]

In a park? He's a twat!

I lost a poo this morning... turned my head to stop the dog running after an off lead dog, turned back and it had disappeared into the patchy grass and leaf litter.

Trust me, I looked! I feel really guilty. OK it was at the base of a hedge, unlikely anyone will stand on it... But it's my dog's shit, dammit!!!

I can't imagine choosing to leave one in a park. I rarely stick and flick either!

[diddl]

"there are numerous signs about cleaning up after your dogs"

So there's the answer!

(Assuming they don't also say-"long grass excepted"!)

[ItsAllGoingToBeFine]

It's difficult to say who's being unreasonable without knowing the layout/rules of the area/proximity of dog bins.

It's really not. Your dog does a shit. You pick it up and carry it for however long it takes to reach a bin, preferably your own. It's always wrong to not pick up.

[BlackberryCane]

What a lazy, dirty arsehole.

[unlikelytobe]

bag in tree people, they might be people like me who take it home

Well, some may mean to but it's not nice to see and I think a lot of people must be forgetting to collect it on the way back. If you're going to do that at least place it out of sight and don't leave it there too long.