Poop Patrol Bags

Ok, so picking up poop isn't the favorite subject of anyone, but it's something we all need to do, right? The No Trace Waste Bags by Pet Nation make clean up a snap. The bags are stronger then most others on the market. In fact, the manufacturer claims it is 5x stronger then any other comparable bag.

One-hand easy-pull dispensing makes clean-ups a breeze. Adjustable strap dispenser attaches to any leash and safety reflectors are ideal for nighttime walks. The holder might be a bit cumbersome on the leash of hyper dogs, as it is a bit heavy to have attached to the leash. But the bags are still really good. They are bio-degradable and packages contain 25% more bags.

When you order the dispenser, you'll also receive 3 refill rolls of bags.

Available in pink, blue, or gray.

This product can be found at most retailers and is part of the PetSmart favorite things promotion. In the promotion,
Online shoppers can save 15% with this link and their PetSmart card.

Poop Pick-Up Service

I wrote about this a while ago, but it seems these type of companies are becoming more popular and more are joining the industry.

What do these companies do? Well, are you too pooped to scoop? Would you rather do anything else in the world then clean up your yard after your pet has been out there doing his duty? There are several small businesses that will do the dirty work for you. “There is a never ending supply of the stuff and you have better things to do,” claims one such service. These companies will come to your house, clean up the mess, bag it up, disinfect the area, and take it all with them once they’re done.

It’s an interesting business and I can appreciate the entrepreneurial spirit of these folks. Dog waste can pollute the environment if not disposed of properly and apparently this is a needed service for people who just don’t want to deal with the problem themselves.

Are Pooper Scooper Laws Fair?

http://www.helium.com/tm/499019/asking-pooper-scooper-asking

On another site where I write, there is a continuing debate on whether or not pooper scooper laws are fair. My feeling is that if you are going to get a dog, then you need to expect that a dog will have to "dog his business" and that it is important to scoop it up, especially in public places. Here is the full article I wrote, and you can also click through and see the other sides of the debate if you're interested.

Spat over horse manure wafts into court

MILFORD, Conn. - A man has filed a lawsuit against his neighbor, claiming he can't sell his house because of the smell of horse manure from next door. In court documents filed in Superior Court, Gino Sciortino claims Helen Catlin is permitting significant quantities of horse manure to accumulate in piles on her property and the foul odor can often be smelled at his home.

Helen and David Catlin have lived on Park Road more than a year and own three horses.

Sciortino said that at times, the smell is overpowering.

"When the wind blows, everything smells of horse manure," Sciortino said Thursday, saying the odor has made it difficult to sell his house for the past year.

Sciortino is asking for monetary damages as well as an injunction ordering Helen Catlin to relocate the horse manure and other debris and to re-grade the soil near their property line.

"Once this is resolved, I will try to sell again," Sciortino said.

David Catlin, the husband of the woman named in the lawsuit, said Thursday that he mixes the manure with other material to create compost, which he sprinkles with lime to prevent the scent from wafting across the property.

"Nobody else seems to be able to smell it," Catlin said of his other neighbors. "He's misleading a lot of people."

Staffers at the Pomperaug Health District have not reported any complaints about horse manure on Park Road.

Picking up the Poop

There is a hot debate on another site where I write http://www.helium.com/user/show/80285/, about pooper scooper laws. Here is my opinion on the topic.

All too often a dog's mess left behind by an irresponsible owner becomes someone elses problem. For this reason, and many others, requiring pet owners to clean up after their pets should be mandatory.

Besides a common courtesy to others, leaving behind dog poop could be hazardous to our health. Scientists have discovered that dog poop is a major cause of water pollution, and that such pollution poses a significant hazard to human health.
Canine waste contains lots of unhealthy bacteria with almost unpronounceable names: fecal streptococcus and fecal coliforms are just two examples. In sufficiently high amounts, these bacteria can make people sick.

Dog waste also contains other not-so-lovely disease-transmitting organisms such as roundworms. These parasites can cause their human victims to lose their vision temporarily, as well as trigger coughs and fevers.

As a dog owner, it always amazes me when people don't clean up after their pets when walking outside. The left over poop could be stepped in by other humans, kids, or animals, increasing the risk of spreading disease.
There continue to be public parks and walking trails looking to ban dogs. The main reason? Because of the mess dogs leave. The problem is, it's not the dog's fault, it's the owners. And now, responsible dog owners are suffering because others aren't cleaning up after their pets.

If a person doesn't want to clean up a little dog poop, why get the dog in the first place? That's one of the very simple responsibilities of having a pet. And for those of people who do clean up, they're stuck suffering the consequences of those who
leave a mess behind.

Trackposted to Outside the Beltway, Diary of the Mad Pigeon, Blog @ MoreWhat.com, The Amboy Times, Rosemary's Thoughts, The Random Yak, and Big Dog's Weblog, thanks to Linkfest Haven Deluxe.

Dog Housebreaking Blues

I’m the youngest of two kids, and my mom always told me that I was so high maintenance that if I was born first, she probably wouldn’t have had a second child. I’m starting to feel that way with my puppies. Our first dog, Rocco, was a breeze to housetrain. He picked up on things fast and had very few accidents in the house. Unfortunately, this isn’t the case with Kelso.

I think the main reason is that Rocco was only 4 months old when we got him. He went from the Breeder, to a store, to our home. He hadn’t developed many bad habits yet and caught on right away with our dog litter box training methods.

Kelso, however, has had a different life. He’s 7 months old, and has gone from breeder, to pet store, to his first home (where he was somewhat neglected), to a second home (where he wasn’t compatible with the other pets) and finally to our home. Along his travels, I’m sure he was housetrained a different way in each home. He’s a confused little pup and he doesn’t know what is OK. He has this habit of only doing “his business” on the rug when no one is looking, which leads me to believe he was punished in some way for going on the rug, which is why he basically tries to hide when he has to “go.”

Over the last week, he has shown some improvements. He’s getting more comfortable living in our home, but still has his share of accidents. The most frustrating thing is that he really doesn’t signal before he has to go. With our first dog, Rocco, there is a whole routine he goes through when he needs to relieve himself. He runs wild, sniffs, and circles. Plenty of time for us to know his intentions. Plenty of time during training where we could bring him to where it was OK to “get busy.” Kelso, on the other hand, just stops and “flops.” No barking, no running, no sniffing, no circling. No advance notice.

However frustrating it has been, he’s come a long way in the last week and starting to run over to the litter box on his own first thing in the morning. The evening, on the hand, is a totally different story. So, we just take a deep breath, get out the stain remover and the carpet steamer, and clean the mess. Just part of the housetraining blues.



Trackposted to Outside the Beltway, Pirate's Cove, Stuck On Stupid, The Random Yak, Allie Is Wired, and Big Dog's Weblog, thanks to Linkfest Haven Deluxe.
dogs, housebreaking,

Pick up the Poop

I've written about this in past posts, but it still irks me at times. I was out walking Rocco this morning and of course, he finds some poop that some other dog left in the neighborhood. Luckily I got him away from it before it got in his fur. It wasn't like it was in someone's yard, I was in a public area.

As a "responsible" dog owner, it always amazes me when people don't clean up after their pets when walking outside. There continue to be articles about public parks and walking trails looking to ban dogs. The main reason? Because of the mess dogs leave. The problem is, it's not the dog's fault, it's the owners.

And now, responsible dog owners are suffering because others aren't cleaning up after their pets. If you don't want to clean up a little dog poop, why get the dog in the first place? That's one of the very simple responsibilities of having a pet. And for those of us who do clean up, we're stuck suffering the consequences of those who leave a mess behind.

Dog Poop Disposal

I found a great blurb from Housetraining for Dummies about what to do with dog poop. It is important to properly dispose of this waste.
The link for the full article is http://www.dummies.com/WileyCDA/DummiesArticle/id-1467.html
But I've paraphrased it below:


"Curbing is the polite term for a canine waste disposal method that really should be called the Shove-It-Into-the-Sewer approach. A curbed dog is one who's been taught to poop in the street, right by the curb, so that the next rainstorm can sweep his deposits into the nearest gutter. Once in the gutter, the poop and lots of other waste wind their way through a city's sewer system and, eventually, into nearby creeks, streams, and rivers. Those final destinations are one reason curbing is a questionable canine waste disposal method.

Scientists have discovered that dog poop is a major cause of water pollution, and that such pollution poses a significant hazard to human health.

Canine waste contains lots of nasty bacteria with almost unpronounceable names: fecal streptococcus and fecal coliforms are just two examples. In sufficiently high amounts, these bacteria can make people sick — sometimes very sick.

Dog waste also contains other not-so-lovely disease-transmitting organisms such as roundworms. These parasites can cause their human victims to lose their vision temporarily, as well as trigger coughs and fevers.

Never thought your dog's doo could do so much damage, did you?


Bagging it
The quickest, easiest way to get rid of a dog's poop is to put it in a plastic bag and either drop the bag in a trash can or flush the bag's contents down a toilet.

You might think that this method would have a high gross-out factor. And it does — if you use the wrong size bag. There's nothing more disgusting than using a teeny-tiny bag to pick up a great big piece of dog poop and having some of that poop end up on your hand instead of in the bag. But that doesn't have to happen. There are two keys to effective bagging: using the right size bag and developing the proper bagging technique.

For all but the tiniest dogs, a sandwich-sized bag or smaller just isn't big enough to pick up poop. It's far better to choose a larger size, such as an empty bread bag or the plastic bag that your morning newspaper was delivered in. Both these types of bags also carry a second advantage: They're oblong, which greatly eases your ability to get the poop into the bag instead of on yourself.


Before you use your bag, though, check to make sure that it doesn't have any holes. Picking up a bunch of dog doo only to have it hit the ground again is a surefire recipe for frustration.

After you have a large enough bag, it's easy to gather up the poop. Here's how:

1. Pull the plastic bag over one hand like a glove.

2. Pick up the poop with your bagged hand.

3. With your other hand, grasp the open end of the bag and pull the bag inside out.

The poop will now be inside the bag.

4. Knot the bag and drop it into the nearest trash can.

Alternatively, take the bag inside and flush the contents down the toilet. Throw the plastic bag in the trash.

Of course, if there's no trash can nearby, you'll need to carry the bagged poop until you find a suitable receptacle. But take heart. Soon, not even the thought of having to tote your dog's poop around town will gross you out. It'll just be a fact of life.

Scooping it
If you simply can't bear the idea of handling your dog's poop — even if there's a bag between the poop and your hand — you may want to consider using a pooper-scooper.

Pooper scoopers are a good choice for owners whose dogs confine their defecating to their own yards. Even though pooper-scooper laws don't apply to dogs who eliminate on their owners' property, it's still a good idea to pick up your dog's doodoo. That way you'll avoid stepping in it while you're gardening, mowing the lawn, or running to catch an errant toddler (and the toddler won't step in it, either). However, scoopers aren't as good as bags for owners whose dogs potty while walking, because the scoopers are relatively cumbersome to carry."

dog poop, pets, dog,

Growing Pet Business - Picking Up Poop

Are you too pooped to scoop? Would you rather do anything else in the world then clean up your yard after your pet has been out there doing his duty? Well, a new growing business seems to be cleaning up lately.

I’ve come across several recently who will do the dirty work for you. “There is a never ending supply of the stuff and you have better things to do,” claims one such service. These companies will come to your house, clean up the mess, bag it up, disinfect the area, and take it all with them once they’re done.

It’s an interesting business, one that I have no intention of starting myself. But, I can appreciate the entrepreneurial spirit of these folks. Dog waste can pollute the environment if not disposed of properly and apparently this is a needed service for people who just don’t want to do it themselves.

Just another segment of the pet industry popping up to serve our needs.

Cleaning Up After Your Dog

As a "responsible" dog owner, it always amazes me when people don't clean up after taking their pets when walking outside. There have been several articles recently about public parks and walking trails looking to ban dogs. The main reason? Because of the mess dogs leave. The problem is, it's not the dog's fault, it's the owners.

And now, responsible dog owners are suffering because others aren't cleaning up after their pets. If you don't want to clean up a little dog poop, why get the dog in the first place? That's one very simple responsibility of having a pet. And for those of us who do clean up, we're stuck suffering the consequences of those who don't.