Damn dog owners and their inability to pick up poo

[DogPooPoo]

Yes, it’s another dog thread.
No, Mumsnet aren’t rabid dog haters.

Yet again I’m cleaning dog shit off my or my kids’ trainers (or bike wheels, scooter wheels, roller boots etc). This time, not only is it on the sole, but before I’d noticed, I’d bashed the offending shoe against the side fabric of my other shoe, and it’s ingrained in. It was smushy and stank.
I’ve scraped it off as best I can before I get home, but I expect they’ll need to go in the washing machine, which will probably ruin them. Or I’ll just bin them, as I don’t really like the idea of dog poo in my washing machine.

On to my AIBU.

AIBU that it is high time we had a high-fee dog licence, which paid for dog wardens, dog poo dna testing, extra cctv, a database of dogs to detect which owners aren’t picking up, massive fines for the offending owners, and taking the dog away for repeat offenders with a lifetime ban on owning dogs.

YANBU - we need to re-introduce dog licences, and come down hard on owners who leave poo in public spaces

YABU, it’s just poo

I wish Mumsnet had an edit button.
When I say I often pick it up when out with my dog I of course mean other dog’s poo. I always pick up after my own dog.

I don’t disagree but I do wonder how much of this vast amount of dog shit (that no one ever admits to not picking up) is actually from a dog. Cats roam and shit anywhere they want to but get zero blame for all these erroneous turds. And bollocks to anyone saying they always cover it up / do it in bushes or under cover. I’ve seen a cat shitting in the middle of the pavement before.

Can you please change the title to some damn dog owners. I’m offended.

We really need to re-introduce a dog licence.

This would pay towards active dog wardens who could spot fouling, illegal breeds and any strays as well as those owners who seem to think that loose dogs in play areas is fine.

Photo ID and proof of address would also be needed to obtain one as should where you purchased your dog from!!! That should stop backyard breeders and chancers who profit from breeding designer pooches .

You should only obtain a dog from a registered breeder or a rescue, not gumtree or some random .

You should only w as lol your dog if you've got a licence on you.

A bit draconian but I'm sick to the back teeth of hearing about dog attacks and of hearing dogs howling all day to be let in or who have owners out at work all day long with no respite.

Dog Owner - always pick up ( and bin)
Occasionally I see bagged poo under a tree and very occasionally see just left poo. Neither of these are acceptable IMHO.

Where are these places where you cannot go out without falling over dog poo or getting all over every pair of shoes / pram wheels , this is not my experience. ?

I lost my lovely dog a while ago and am hoping to get another one soon. I'd happily pay for a licence, but I'm not comfortable about the idea of it being prohibitively expensive. I know animals aren't a right, but I wouldn't be happy about someone on limited income just not being able to have one. They can do so much for peoples' wellbeing.

Yes, I suspect that’s exactly what would happen. Responsible dog owners would purchase the expensive licence and the shit (excuse the pun) owners wouldn’t and carry doing what they’re doing. The licence fee paid by the responsible owners would have to be astronomical to afford to cover all the expense of policing the shit owners. And also what would be the point of DNA testing the poo? Unless you had a comprehensive Doggie DNA database it would be pointless.

Dog owner here and I agree. We always without fail pick up. I have returned to the scene of the crime with a brush and hot soapy water when there was a bad case of the runs once or twice over the years. I also loathe the amount of shit everywhere. Steaming great piles of it.

We seem to be really lucky in our village that everyone without fail seems to pick up. It's a very "doggy" village and you'd be lynched if someone caught you not doing it.
Agree it's absolutely disgusting not to pick up. I don't know the answer really. You'll always and forever get the selfish arseholes who think they don't think rules apply to them, be in the dog shit issue, fly tipping, chucking dog ends on the floor, dumping rubbish out of car windows. I don't think you can change people like that by appealing to their "good nature". The only way I suppose would be to clamp down on fines.

Totally agree. Get a petition going!

I live in a seaside town and it is literally overrun by dogs now / dog poo - often multiple loads on every street / unruly dogs running everywhere spoiling a walk a long the beach or beach activities / constant barking etc.

It all just feels really out of hand in the country. Too many dogs. Too many irresponsible dog owners. It wasn't like this a few years ago. Where is this going in the future?!

If a dog owner can bend to pick up their purse they can bend to pick up dog poo. It’s hateful for anyone who suffers the outcome and I empathise with you OP.

I think it would be a very good idea to bring back dog licensing and make DNA registration of dogs mandatory too so if stolen they can be returned to their owners. Might weed out some unscrupulous breeders/owners.

Im a dog lover and always pick up when I look my offspring’s dog.
I absolutely hate dog poo in the street/pavement and despise the owners who allow it.

The two are instantly distinguishable from each other.

Yes, I’d agree dog breeding should be far more regulated. If that came first so there were less dogs available then it might be worth monitoring dog ownership.

I'm not a dog owner but I love dogs. Around where I live,there seems to be a lot of people who pick up their dog's poo,but then just drop the bag on the pavement or the grass! In the last couple of weeks I have seen on 4 separate occasions bags on the floor that people have trodden on or run a pushchair over,and the contents have squelched out of the bag. 🤢

There are many posts about dog poo and I agree it’s horrible .. like most I’ve had to get it off school shoes and running trainers and at one point off a school bag 🤢

what I find strange is that so many people think it’s OK to have a pet - we haven’t for about 15 years now - completely about their impact on the natural world and the environmental cost - 53% of 16-18 year olds think the world will end in their lifetime..

So many horrible stories in one post, vom vom vom.
Am horrified by the poor tot putting dog poo in his mouth, that's absolutely horrendous. 😭😭😭

You raise excellent points about the school run too, and I really think parents should not take dogs on the school run, and also, children must change into indoor shoes when they get there, especially when they are the ages that sit on the floor. I remember sitting on the floor at primary school and a child next to me had shit on his shoe and ot went on the carpet, and we were all expected to do carry on sitting on that dirty rug.

Annoys me too and I have two dogs! I think because it’s so easy to pick up!!!

We recently re did our front garden and then I came out the morning after and there was a dog poo in our flower bed! I get annoyed because our estate is quiet so people walk with their dogs off lead! Which means their dogs walk into peoples gardens and things

I do think this is an important point that gets mostly ignored. I'm vegan and very conscious of my ethical and environmental footprint. I think dogs and cats aren't something we should be encouraging. The planet is in dire straits, and the impact of pets is absolutely enormous, yet very much ignored.

More like euthanasia or permanent removal of the owner unwilling to look after their dog.

What else don’t they bother about with caring for an animal?

I'm another dog owner who.would happily pay a licence fee, dna linked to microchips and some really restrictive licences for breeders. I would also ban all 'rescues' etc importing dogs from Romania and anynither country.

Dog poo on paths is vile, there was some right outside my house the other day, on a busy footpath used a lot by little kids and pram pushers as it's on the way to the primary school. I cleaned it up myself, but it had happened right in the middle of the day so the fucking owner knew damn well his dog had crapped in the middle of the footpath.

I think people do this because someone has spotted their dog crapping, so they feel obliged to pick it up, and as soon as they can without being spotted, they just drop the bag full of shit. Vile isn't it?

I’m a dog owner and agree with licensing - didn’t that used to be a a thing? Why did it stop?

i picked up ddog’s poo yesterday and just near it was another poo I didn’t think was my dog’s (wrong colour) but picked it up anyway. It was cold so definitely not his but it was solid and easy to pick up so I just can’t understand why you wouldn’t?! But then I don’t understand littering either.

More like euthanasia or permanent removal of the owner unwilling to look after their dog.

This is the optimal solution obvs.

“AIBU that it is high time we had a high-fee dog licence, which paid for dog wardens, dog poo dna testing, -extra cctv, a database of dogs to detect which owners aren’t picking up, massive fines for the offending owners, and taking the dog away for repeat offenders with a lifetime ban on owning dogs. “ Who the hell is manning all this? They don’t ban people for life for carrying out animal abuse do they! So they’re never going to do it for dog shit.

Flaming hell OP. Although yes dog shit is annoying and people should pick up- your list is overkill 😂

Where on earth do you all live that’s covered in dog shit?!

Dog licenses don’t work.
Stop bloody breeding- that might!

The tide is turning . My family run 2 cafes in neighbouring towns. We were dog friendly but have now changed back to no dogs (unless guide dogs obviously)

In the 18 months of being dog friendly we had multiple complaints of bad dog behaviour and upset customers.
More wee and poo accidents than you can imagine and we lost most of our regular non dog owner customers and seemed to get an influx of rude entitled dog owning ones who spent less and had far too many of the free dog treats 😂

3 months in and we are doing much better . Had to have a deep clean of both premises though as they became so run down

We often had issues with dog mess outside the cafes too and we had to clean that up as it was affecting our customers and the public where the outside seating was and just so many accidents not dealt with