NO PUBLIC POO PLEASE!

Ballymacool Park, Letterkenny

We take Oscar to our local park for a walk every day and it is a joy to walk there with him.  The park is beautiful and is truly a gem in Letterkenny's crown.  However, I have noticed that the place is becoming used by some dog owners to allow their pet to use the park as their lavatory and  this is not a good thing!

A lot of money and work went into giving Letterkenny this fabulous park which is enjoyed by walkers, dog owners, children and families of the area and this should be respected by dog owners.

Notice in park

There are of course many signs up asking owners to pick up after their dogs (if they even allow them to "go" in the park in the first place!).  There are even bins throughout the park where the dog owner can pick up their dog's poo and bin it.  Why then do some owners think it is perfectly fine to allow their dog to foul this wonderful place?

Oscar is only 6 months old and he is trained to do his poo and pee in our yard for us to pick up.  He does this prior to his daily walks and has never, nor will never, defecate outside the area we appoint for him.

And if Oscar can be taught to do this so too can other dogs.  It's not difficult and it is such a joy to take a dog for a walk who is not going to do his business during the walk.

From DogTalk101.blogspot:

"Dog poop is a problem we deal with on a daily basis. But is it dangerous? How much do you know? Is pet waste a health hazard?

Here are the dangerous facts:

1. Dog poop is NOT good fertilizer. It's toxic to your lawn! The high nutrient concentration in dog poop will burn and discolor the grass, creating "hot spots".

2. Nearly two decades ago, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) classified pet waste as a dangerous pollutant in the same category as toxic chemicals and oil.

3. You may not live near water, but unscooped poop from your yard is carried by overland water flow or is washed into storm drains, ending up in far away streams, rivers and ground water. 

4. The U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirms pet waste can spread parasites including hookworms, ringworms, tapeworms and Salmonella. When infected dog poop comes into contact with your lawn, the poop will eventually "disappear", but the parasite eggs can linger for years! When a human or animal comes into contact with that soil through everyday activities like walking barefoot, gardening or playing, they risk infection from those eggs ... even years after the poop is gone.

5. Pet waste is teaming with E. Coli and other harmful bacteria including fecal coliform bacteria, which causes serious kidney disorders, intestinal illness, cramps and diarrhea in humans. (There are 23 million fecal coliform bacteria in a single gram of pet waste!) 

6. Dog poop often contains roundworm larvae, which cause blindness. If a human ingests a roundworm larva, it can migrate through the body causing disease to the brain, lungs, kidneys, liver, heart or eyes. So when people (especially children) touch soil, dog toys or anything that has been in contact with dog feces and then touch their mouths, they can become infected. Dog poop doesn't just "wash away" or disappear. So if you're not disposing of your dog's waste, you're putting yourself, your family, your dog and your water supply at risk."

The green at the Childrens' Playground

Surely most dog owners are aware of the dangers of leaving their dog's poo lying around?  If they are not, they should be!  

What is most disturbing to me is the fact that much of the dog poo is on a little area of grass directly beside the childrens' playground!
This means that children using this area who wander out onto the green area are in direct danger of ending up with serious, life-threatening diseases simply because a dog owner decided that leaving their dogs' waste behind was acceptable behaviour!

Nasty droppings in the park!

There is also the added annoyance a person who steps in the stuff rightly feels.  They then have to attempt to wipe their shoes, probably on the grass, thus spreading any worms eggs or viruses in the poo.  Not only that, there may be some traces left of their shoe and they then walk into their house where the germs are spread further and possibly laying down danger for babies in the house or visiting the house.

Dog poo is nasty and potentially dangerous stuff.  If you can't train your dog to do his toilet at home prior to  his walk then it is incumbent on YOU to pick it up and bin it so that some innocent child doesn't end up very ill or worse!