This is bullshit.
OK, it’s a bag of dog shit. But it’s still bullshit.
I’ve observed this practice for years, but have been
thinking about it more since overhearing a conversation about it at a trailhead
a week or so ago. What I'm talking about is the habit some dog owners have of bagging their critters' doo, then
leaving it beside the trail.
The idea, I’m told, is that they simply don’t want to carry warm turds in their pocket, so they plan to pick up the bags as they pass by on
the way back to their cars. In reality, they seem to forget fairly often. Or they change
routes and end up not returning for Fido’s shit.
A couple of winters ago, someone tied the bag to a tree on
Microdot, and it hung there for days. The rest of us were left with the choice
of seeing the damned thing on every ride, or packing out someone else’s dog
shit. Neither option was fair.
So here’s the deal, dog owners. You may feel that this
practice is OK, but it’s not. You don't like the feel of warm shit in your pocket? Well boo fuckin' hoo. If your pet’s poo is too unpleasant
to carry, you should leave your mutt at home.
I’m not exactly crazy about carrying an empty, sticky Gu
packet in my pocket, but I don’t drop my trash on the trail and tarnish your outdoor
experience by making you step past my debris until I return to pick it up. That
would be lazy, rude and selfish.
Lazy, rude and selfish people suck.
If your dog packs it in, you pack it out. Please pack it with you along the way.
8 comments:
Well stated Mr. Woody. I've often wondered about this practice myself.
To be fair, I am a new dog owner and I have, at times set a bag to the side of the trail to retrieve on my return trip. However, I always come back to pick it up and often will pick up other folk's bags as well.
My question is this: If you plan on leaving the bag with the poo, why bag it at all?
Thanks for being responsible about picking up your bags, Phil, but I still disagree with the practice. During the time you leave those bags beside they trail, they are unsightly litter to everyone else.
It's not OK to impose such a thing on the experience of other trail users. I assume most reasonable people wouldn't consider it OK to throw down cigarette butts or food wrappers with the intention of picking them up on the way out.
So why do they think it is acceptable to pollute everyone else's view of the woods by cluttering it with shit bags?
you spelt do wrong
If a plastic bag on the trail can ruin your "experience" I feel pretty sorry for you. It can't possibly be that big of a deal.
Let me know which trail you'll be on tomorrow, Anonymous. I'll be sure to get there first, and then pick up my empty beer cans on the way back to my car. I'm sure it won't taint your fun in any way. And it'll be SO much more convenient for me. That's what it's all about.
anonymous - I agree fully with the story here and Tim's responses. The act of leaving plastic bags of dog crap on the trails is annoying and irresponsible, whether it is for an hour until you return or until someone else picks up after you. It is litter, whether it is there for 5 minutes or 5 days. It DOES take away from the experience of others. It also provides for one more thing to try to not run over/step in/ski through/knock off a branch/etc... while out there. If you don't want to carry it, at least get it clearly off the trail, not by a few inches, but by many feet. As a dog owner myself, it is annoying to run/bike/ski past a bunch of bags along the trail having my dog veer over and/or come to a sudden stop each time to check out what someone else left behind. Other dogs have worse habits of actually wanting to tear into them and/or eat them (glad mine isn't that way, luckily). Leave it there for a day or so and it could easily get tilled up and mixed into the next trail grooming (ever hear of "brown klister"?).
Well said....but probably falling on deaf ears. :( Dog owners are disgusting when it comes to dog-doo. Ever hear of 'leave no trace'?
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