Trained Dogs Rock
Your Duty, Not Your Dog’s “Dooty”
In cities all over the world, canine waste (or at least at one point) is becoming a growing concern as the accumulations of dog waste litters the streets. With large concentrations of dogs in large cities, neighbors take different actions to catch people leaving their dog poop on the ground. If it isn’t bad enough in some cities, with the current conditions they are in run-down urban areas, dog owners leave dog wastes on the ground. In some cases neglecting the doggy bags provided for free by the city and paid for by the residents hard earned tax dollars. People that have effectively took the time to train their pets properly, they would know when and where to leave behind their doggy waste and the owners to properly pick up after them.
Environmentalists have another stand point of course, claiming that this adds to the rise of pollutions in general with some media outlets creating an actually sensation over dog litter. Some have even gone to lengths claiming that the bubonic plague, common colds, and other horrendous diseases all originate from canine droppings. Of course there are those who take it far beyond the next level claiming that dog owners are putting dogs before the children of the city by allowing such diseases to pollute the neighborhood. OK, lets just say all of these points are valid and was actually backed by some sort of research that in some way confirmed in some far off way, that in fact dog droppings cause disease and possible canines add to pollution in general and have been all along. But where are the solutions? If anything we are still just as far from fixing the issue than we have always been just some added drama is darn right bull crap (pun?).
Upon further research there are in fact some cities that have gone to some pretty clever as well as creative lengths to try to bag the problem at the source…the owners.
In some cities, economic hardship is real and spending tax money on items like doggy bags is not a luxury all can afford. In Brunete, a small village of Madrid, Spain dog litter has been an ongoing issue as well as complaints by citizens for quite some time. According to the NY Times who first reported on the story, Borja Guiterez, Mayor of Brunete had a creative idea of his own. At an extremely low cost, he devised a solution that has stopped the doggy litter problem in his city by nearly 70%. By recruiting an army of volunteers to secretly watch frequently visited areas known for accumulating dog wastes. When they would spot someone neglecting their responsibilities as pet owners, a volunteer would run up and casual engage in conversation, recording the name and breed of the canine and possibly the owners name as well. As the owners walked off a volunteer would scoop up the fecal wastes. Upon investigation, the volunteers were able to find the owners address by searching the cities pet data base and having the post man return their forgotten items in a white box, with the towns official seal, labeled “lost and found.”
As a pet owner, you inherit certain responsibilities, just as birthing a child. Whether you own a Great Dane or a miniature pincher, your duties as an owner are the same in terms of their wastes. Not just as owners but also as ordinary citizens your duties and general respect to your neighbors are just as important. Dogs will be dogs and their only duty is to “dooty” leaving it your duty to do the “dooty.” Like a very clever Mayor once said, “It’s your dog, it’s your dog poop, and we are just returning it to you.”
