Posted on April 21, 2009 by: WayCoolDogs

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It takes a knowledgeable person to accept that feces is a normal part of everyday life for all living creatures. But very few people seem to actually get it. Dog feces or “dog poop”  is very much a normal and an accepted part of who dogs are (dog waste or dog fecal matter to those with a delicate stomach) — as our own bowel movements are part of who we are. But for some reason, society has developed this habit of considering dog or human feces as ugly, distasteful, disgusting, and nasty–anything but what it is.

Eliminating feces is part of our natural body functions and allows us to be alive. Without it, we would be unable to live  a healthy life. Abnormal feces means we are sick or something is the matter with us,  and normal feces means we are healthy and doing just fine. When pet owners consider such a normal body function as a  “disgusting” and “filthy” habit — giving their dog or even their children the impression it is a something extremely distasteful —  then we end up stepping in it, straddling it, smelling it and viewing it from people who — “eewwwie”— can’t stand to clean up after their own animals.

“A survey of 1,000 people across the state by the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources and East Carolina University Center for Survey Research, found that people aged 18 to 24 years and 65 years and older are most likely to report they always or often pick up pet waste. Two age groups tied for the least likely to pick up poop: 35- to 44-year-olds and 45- to 54-year-olds. ” (Source: The News & Observer)

DEVELOPING PROBLEMS WITH “DOG POOP”

Recently recognized as an environmental pollutant, the majority of excessive dog waste can be traced to the  dog’s owner who refuses to clean up after it — perfected by expert scientists who can easily track the feces bacteria’s origin in streams and seawater. Studies show that on many beaches the raising levels of bacteria have prevented swimmers from entering the water simply due to people walking their dogs and refusing to clean up after them.

Because of the developing problem of 71,000,000 dogs generating over 4.4 billion pounds of dog waste annually,  cities are being forced to issue citations to pet owners who refuse to clean up after their animals with the fines ranging from $100 to $1,000 depending on the location.  Other cities are spending some serious money to purchase extra trash cans and signs for parks and beaches reminding owners to clean up after their own pets. Obviously, common sense is not one of the requirements of owning an animal.

THE FIDO HYPOTHESIS

This hypothesis is in reference to high bacteria areas which have pet owners allowing their pets to “poop” on the beach, parks, or neighborhood yards yet refuse to acknowledge it, avoiding the responsibility of cleaning up after them. In addition to accumulating amounts of dog waste, disease causing bacteria from animals (mainly dogs) makes other animals and humans sick who frequent the area.

We hear the media refer to E. coli in many diseases being spread, but diseases from four out of ten household dogs can become pretty ugly as their intenstinal area and feces contains many forms of dangerous bacteria — E. coli, fecal coliform bacteria, salmonella, and giardia. When this amount of dog waste is turned loose on the beaches and eventually ends up in the pond or lakes, the environment can become permanently damaged over time. Multiply your household dog times oover 68  million dogs back in 2000 with over 45% considered large dog, it may be time to carry a dog feces bag. And choose the flushable bio-degradable ones…like from Pet Habitats.

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