Kinkajou : Doggy Business

Kinkajou : Why clean up after your dog?

Erasmus: Because it is important to do so! There is a growing community expectation that people should clean up their dog poos. But just how really important is this?

A friend of mine was travelling in Tokyo. He noticed many Japanese taking their dogs for a walk. Unfortunately in the central parts of Tokyo there are very few trees, each of which serves as a magnetic focal point to its doggy community. At one time he saw 5 dogs in the space of 5 minutes try to pee / poo on one single tree. You can imagine what would develop if no one in this community picked up their dogs poo. The tree would become increasingly surrounded by mounds of dog faeces. Eventually the dogs would give up, being dis-enthused by the mess, then returning to defecating at random on the hard bitumen/concrete sidewalks.

It becomes obvious in this extreme example that everybody needs to pick up their dog’s faeces. Too many people and too many dogs sharing too small a space makes any other choice of action essentially impracticable.

In suburbia, many people have quite adequate grounds and yards around the house. Most dogs would be quite agreeable with defecating in this type of environment. In such an environment it would not be essential or even necessary to pick up the dog faeces, but individual householders can make their own decision.

Erasmus: In Australia, with its warm arid climate, mounds of dog faeces tend to dehydrate and remain to litter the landscape. If one has several dogs, even in a good size yard, the yard becomes covered with dry smelly landmines, waiting to catch human and even doggy occupants in a moment of misadventure. In Brisbane, the city council recommends that if you have several dogs and the mounds of faeces are starting to build up a new yard, perhaps once a week shovel up the dog poo into a plastic bag and dump it all the rubbish bin – for your own sake. There is less smell. There is less chance of stepping on the stuff. There is less chance of the stuff been brought back into the house on the dog’s feet. It is more aesthetic.

I know one female friend who leans towards simply using the watering hose every few days to hose down any new poos – to break them up and to accelerate them recycling back into the lawn/soil.

Kinkajou : I remember one year when it rained very regularly throughout autumn. A friend of mine looked through the window and noticed large white furry patches distributed throughout the garden. When he went out to investigate he discovered that the mounds of poo had sprouted white filamentous fungi. Generally in Australia it doesn’t rain enough for this to happen. But the example does emphasise how long it can take full dog faeces to break down and how it can contaminate the environment for some time.

In dog parks, the volume of dogs and people passing through the same area means that people and dogs are both at risk of stepping in the randomly scattered mounds of dog poo. It becomes important to remove the dog poo for the sake of all of the uses including the doggy ones in the dog park. You do not really want your dog walking shit covered feet into your nice clean house – do you?

Erasmus: We have some really awesome beach dog parks as well in Brisbane. Nudgee beach in the north of Brisbane has a dog human zone. And some of the dog parks down at the Gold Coast near Brisbane are truly awesome as well. But many people plus many dogs equals lots of contamination in a relatively small area – necessitating the removal of dog faeces for your own sake, for your animal sake, and for everyone else’s sake as well.

Kinkajou : Probably the main issue for most suburbanites in typical streets of city areas, is the need to clean up common zones such as the footpaths of the city streets. There is a relatively high land area involved, and often a comparatively small number of dogs defecating on the footpath zones involved. Dogs often do prefer to defecate on the footpath rather than at home. Is this a form of territory marking? Is there a natural instinct making animals remove their faeces from their territory? (Many predators bury their faeces as a method of removing its ability to warn other “prey” animals in the same territory that a predator is present and indeed what sort of predator may be present. Cats are a prime example of an animal hiding its faeces by digging a hole and then raking it over with soil to hide his presence).

Erasmus: Dogs I think have evolved with more mobility/larger ranges and relatively less territoriality than a cat – so I guess the imperative is more to just move it away from the dog's prime territory and to move it simply further away. Many dogs clock up significant mileage before being ready to empty their bowels of poo. So often a short walk around the block may not give your dog enough time to find a suitable spot for them to defecate.

The imperative to controlling the spread of dog diseases can also be handled by worming your animal and by being always aware of whether the animal may have picked up another such as giardia – causing diarrhoea, wind, smell and anorexia.

Dog faeces is really not good fertiliser. It has the wrong nitrogen and phosphorus and sulphur ratios to be useful. It is too focal to cover an area. It is cheaper and more effective to fertilise your garden using purchased fertiliser specifically for the purpose of fertilizing.

Kinkajou : Have you noticed how dog poos today are less white than they were in years gone by?

Erasmus : Yes. Its because today many people feed their dogs fewer "digestable" bones, relying more on dog food. This means that there is less calcium in the dogs diet, so less calcium in the dog's poo. So - less white poo.

Kinkajou : What a unique thing .

Kinkajou : Is Picking up dog faeces dangerous?

The answer lies in handling the material safely. Open your hand inside of 2 plastic bags, (like a double glove), grab the faeces, then invaginate the bags (turn them inside out) catching the poo on the inside, tie the tops and throw them in the first available rubbish bin.

Dog poo bags are not made to be disposed of by flushing in the sewerage. The plastic does not break down. It can cause blockages. It can exacerbate fatticles in the sewage pipe network. It will need to be strained out at the sewage treatment plant. Just don’t do it. Don’t flush your doggie-do bags.

Dr Xxxxx: I would seriously suggest you use 2 bags. In medicine they teach us to examine people’s backsides by putting a glove covered finger into the appropriate orifice. Once after taking off my glove, I happened to decide to smell my finger. To my surprise I discovered that there was a faecal smell on my finger that had penetrated the glove. In short, rubber gloves are not 100% impenetrable. Micro tears allow faeces to wick through small holes to contaminate your finger inside. I think this is a very probable scenario if you use only a single plastic bag to pick up dog faeces. So always double bag, if you’re going to go down the “picking up the dog poo” road.

Generally poo is not dangerous if your animal is kept wormed and parasite free. However why take the chance of accidentally contaminating yourself with faeces and risking your own health. Don’t get shit on your fingers.

Kinkajou : Processing Dog Poos? Your options are:

Dr Xxxxx: 8 Genius Ways to Pick Up Your Dog Poop

Kinkajou : Burying it

Kinkajou : Compost it: Only biodegradable plastic bags will compost well.

Kinkajou : Use Newspaper

Remember you will get wicking of faecal fluids through newspaper. It’s OK to use newspaper but still use a plastic bag or a glove proper to reduce potential contamination for yourself. Do not use paper bags to pick up poo.

One student microbiology practical session had students culturing germs from a finger which while covered in thick layers of toilet paper was used to wipe a Petri dish plate. It’s amazing just how many germs go through and how many layers of paper the germs will penetrate. Poo Material will wick through the fibre meshwork of the bag structure: much like it does through toilet paper.

Kinkajou : Freeze it

You can use freezing sprays to make the poop firm, easier to pick up and put somewhere else.  Yes you can buy freeze sprays. Yes many dog poos are too liquid to pick up easily. Not one of the more promoted methods of dog poo handling.

Kinkajou : Pooper Scooper

Kinkajou : Flush it: Do not flush the plastic bag.

Kinkajou : Indoor Bathroom: some owners have “pads: or designated toilet areas in their home. If you have a smaller dog or live in a city, this may be an easy alternative. You will need to train your dog to use these. (Cats naturally will use litter / waste trays provided, but dogs need training). Some  of these high tech items such as the “train n’ praise” potty training system, will  release a treat for your dog after the dog does its business.

Kinkajou : Put it in a Streetlamp

In some cities around the world, streetlamps can actually be powered by dog poo. You simply place the poop bag in the receiving receptacle in the lamp and turn a handle. The machine will then break down microorganisms and produces methane gas that fuels the streetlamp, Biogas—about 60 percent methane—can be produced by having bacteria break down human faeces. ...

Goo : There is actually a spray available that will tell your dog exactly where to do their business.

Erasmus :

Goo :

Commandant :

Beethoven and Frobisher:

Dr AXxxxx :

Kinkajou :

Dr Xxxxx: