Irresponsible dog walkers

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 Trangia 19 Sep 2020

Why are there so many of them? I recently walked a section of the High Weald Landscape Trail and it was lovely everywhere apart from in the short section (about a mile) that passes through Hemsted Forest. From within about half a dozen yards from it's car park it was like a bloody minefield of dog shit which was everywhere on the tracks and paths for the whole route. Why can't dog owners clear this up as soon as their dog poops!!?. Or at the very least flick it off the path with a stick? It's a forest for goodness sake, it's not as though there is a shortage of sticks! And the piles are nearly always in the middle of the path, it's not as though they can't see it.  To claim that they don't see their dog doing a shit is a rubbishy excuse. They are are irresponsible anti social idiots.

 SouthernSteve 19 Sep 2020
In reply to Trangia:

It's rubbish isn't it. Local rules here have helped a lot as much greater punishments for dogs off leads (children's playgrounds) and not picking up (several other areas). There used to be one path that was called 'SH1T ALLEY' locally that is now so much better with the enforcement notice and threat of a camera, but it shouldn't be necessary. 

 DaveHK 19 Sep 2020
In reply to SouthernSteve:

> There used to be one path that was called 'SH1T ALLEY' locally 

We've got an area we refer to as 'dog shit woods'.

Between the shit and getting chased and nipped far too many times I've really lost patience with crap dog owners.

 Andypeak 19 Sep 2020
In reply to Trangia:

Believe it or not the law specifically exempts dog owners from having to pick up in woodland.  

 SouthernSteve 19 Sep 2020
In reply to Andypeak:

> Believe it or not the law specifically exempts dog owners from having to pick up in woodland.  

Let’s see the reference for that please. 

In reply to Andypeak:

Can’t find any reference to a legal exemption with a quick bit of research, but I may not have looked hard enough. I did find one MP and some organisations such as forestry commission encouraging flicking it into the undergrowth. Sadly it looks like this is only because they are so blighted with poo bags hanging from bushes and trees and can’t trust people to actually dispose of it.

I guess they’re thinking that if people are just going to hurl it into a bush anyway then they might as well not add plastic to the problem. It still seems like the best thing is to carry it out with you rather than going by advice that only exists because organisations have totally given up hoping people will actually be responsible. 

Post edited at 09:10
In reply to Andypeak:

Those exemption used to exist but I am pretty sure that they were removed by the 2005 Clean Neighbourhoods Act that replaced the Dog Fouling Act 1996

Post edited at 09:15
 toad 19 Sep 2020
In reply to Stuart Williams:

Theres also the issue of collection and disposal. Stick and flick means staff only have to deal with mcrubbish, nappies and human crap in the car park. If you don't empty the bin in time, people don't take their waste home, they pile it on top of the overflowing bin for your staff to clear up

 fmck 19 Sep 2020
In reply to Trangia:

Yeh I now have to walk my dog elsewhere these days over one dog owner. Her dog attacks every dog on the beach and she just walks on as if nothing was happening.

One particular day I could see ahead a mother was trying to herd her clearly upset children away. As I got closer I could see the same dog owner watching her dog attack swans like it was enterainment. I totally lost the plot with woman and her dog got a kicking when turned its attention on us. She just started clapping her hands saying yeh, yeh, yeh. 

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 Andypeak 19 Sep 2020
In reply to 9WS9c3jps92HFTEp:

I can assure you it still exists. I am a local government enforcement officer and I deal with this legislation every day. Many areas have put in local public spaces protection orders to get around this though. 

 Andypeak 19 Sep 2020
In reply to SouthernSteve:

> Let’s see the reference for that please. 

From legislation.go.uk

"This Act does not apply to land of any of the following descriptions, namely—

(a)land used for agriculture or for woodlands;

(b)land which is predominantly marshland, moor or heath; and

(c)common land to which the public are entitled or permitted to have access otherwise than by virtue of section 193(1) of the [1925 c. 20.] Law of Property Act 1925 (right of access to urban common land)"

In reply to Andypeak:

Well that is an unfortunate error that they didn't repeal that bit. It must be the local byelaws that I got confused with

https://www.sedgemoor.gov.uk/article/1081/Dog-Fouling

The Order applies to all public land including beaches, along with all locations where the public has permission to access private land.

Post edited at 11:12
 SouthernSteve 19 Sep 2020
In reply to Andypeak:

Thanks. That is something worth changing! 

With a move to more raw feeding the amount of multi drug and problematic zoonotic bacteria in faeces is increased. In veterinary hospitals such dogs are often isolated from the rest of the hospital as a precaution.

Post edited at 11:23
 henwardian 19 Sep 2020
In reply to Trangia:

"All dogs should be fed to other dogs until only one dog remains and it should be put in a zoo." 😋

14
In reply to henwardian:

That would be a Shih Tzu  

 henwardian 19 Sep 2020
In reply to 9WS9c3jps92HFTEp:

Nice. 9/10 for actually making me laugh out loud.

 Toerag 20 Sep 2020
In reply to Trangia:

Dogs need putting on a DNA register and DNA testing used to find the culprits. The problem would disappear overnight, along with dog attacks having satisfactory resolutions.

 Dax H 20 Sep 2020
In reply to Toerag:

That would be an excellent idea, they all need chipping anyway so it would be easy to add DNA. 

I understand the leave it where it falls brigade, basically just lazy tossers who have zero social responsibility who should be fed to their own dogs, probably the same people who dump their McDonald's wrappers in the McDonald's carparks. 

What I don't get is the bad it and leave it brigade,  if your going to leave it why bag it first? The only thing I can assume is people bag it if someone is about then ditch the bag at the first opportunity. 

We have 2 dogs and we both have a belt pouch that has 2 sections, one for a roll of poop bags and one for the full used bag. It's really not hard. 

On the subject of poop bags, there needs to be a banning of plastic poop bags, I dread to think how much plastic goes to landfill. We only use fully compostable bags. 

 Andypeak 20 Sep 2020
In reply to Toerag:

That would be insanely expensive and wouldn't prove who was in charge of the dog at the time. My dog is walked by at least 10 different people at times. I would like to think they are responsible when they walk him though. 

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 Robert Durran 20 Sep 2020
In reply to henwardian:

> "All dogs should be fed to other dogs until only one dog remains and it should be put in a zoo." 😋

No, feed it to a wolf. 

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 Dax H 20 Sep 2020
In reply to Andypeak:

I would say ultimately your dog = your responsibility. If you got fined I'm sure you would work out who the problem walker was. 

 Andypeak 20 Sep 2020
In reply to Dax H:

I can assure you it's not that easy in front of a magistrate. If it was my job would be much easier. 

 Hooo 20 Sep 2020
In reply to Andypeak:

It should be though. If someone does something antisocial with a car it's up to the car owner to say who was responsible or take the blame themselves. Why not the same for a dog?

 Hooo 20 Sep 2020
In reply to Trangia:

I'm in the same part of the country as you and yes, it's a plague. There is a nature reserve near me with fields next to it that had a small herd of rare-breed cattle in them. Unfortunately it also had a car park. We've seen people pull up in a range rover, let the dogs out for a shit while they sit in the car, then call them back and drive off. The cows have now gone, apparently they all got diseases from the dog shit.

 Purple 20 Sep 2020
In reply to Trangia:

Need enforceable measures against the menace of cat shite and their irresponsible owners too. 

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 wercat 22 Sep 2020
In reply to Hooo:

I've long been of the opinion that nuisance offences that are made possible by car should result in confiscation (permanent) of any vehicle used to commit the offence, equally applicable to flytipping

 duchessofmalfi 22 Sep 2020
In reply to Trangia:

Don't flick your dog shit off the path, pick it up, bag it and take it home (for God's sake don't hang it in a f*cking tree).  "flicking" is a bloody nuisance making it impossible to stray from the path or sit down or play football etc etc, this "out of my immediate sight" attitude does not mean it's OK. Common practice round here to flick turds into the river (where I swim) or canal (where I paddle) or long grass (where I walk) or football field (where people play football) or grass (where people like to sit).  If there is something more insidious that an dog turd in plain sight it's a stealth turd arranged by the owner.

Pick it up and bin it - no excuse anywhere.

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 duchessofmalfi 22 Sep 2020
In reply to Dax H:

"I understand the leave it where it falls brigade, basically just lazy tossers who have zero social responsibility who should be fed to their own dogs, probably the same people who dump their McDonald's wrappers in the McDonald's carparks. "

Nope - arguably there is a class distinction here. There's plenty of middle class dog owners that wouldn't be seen dead in maccy-Ds or littering but would happily, joyfully, let their prize pooch shit all over the place if they could get away with it.  Where do you think all the Christmas decorations come from?

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 Dax H 22 Sep 2020
In reply to Hooo:

> It should be though. If someone does something antisocial with a car it's up to the car owner to say who was responsible or take the blame themselves. Why not the same for a dog?

This all day every day.

No one seems to want to take any responsibility for anything these days, it's always someone else's fault. 

 danieleaston 22 Sep 2020
In reply to Trangia:

Ive noticed runners with dogs are bad for this. Near me you sometimes get people going for runs with their dogs, dog stops to shit in the middle of the path, runner just keeps going, oblivious.

In reply to Dax H:

I was told by someone that if you are putting them in a general waste bin it makes no difference as there won't be the air to break down once in landfill... never checked to see if true but would be interesting to know.

> On the subject of poop bags, there needs to be a banning of plastic poop bags, I dread to think how much plastic goes to landfill. We only use fully compostable bags. 

 Ridge 22 Sep 2020
In reply to danieleaston:

> Ive noticed runners with dogs are bad for this. Near me you sometimes get people going for runs with their dogs, dog stops to shit in the middle of the path, runner just keeps going, oblivious.

Not easy to keep going if you're on a short canicross line!

It's the oblivious "don't look, don't see" types, runners or othewise, that are a problem. Usually on their mobile phone, utterly unaware that fido is curling one out, killing the wildlife or biting other people.

In reply to duchessofmalfi:

I was going to make this point, you beat me to it. 

Absolutely unacceptable to flick it off the path as kids, both young and old, don't always stick to the path. If I take a detour through the long grass or lovely loam on my bike the last thing I want is an errant turd attaching itself to my tyre or splattering up my downtube and legs. 

Sometimes I'd like to feed the mess to the owners. 

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