Dog Poop, and Its Role in Civil Society

I walk Bob twice a day around my neighborhood. I switch up the route so we don’t get bored, and to increase the chances we’ll meet someone new. On these random loops around the city blocks, I have made a few observations and conclusions about dog poop. Or more specifically, people’s reaction to dog poop.

We begin with the fact that dogs do indeed poop. It would be very unhealthy for them if they did not.

Responsible dog owners pick up said poop with the patented plastic-bag-grab-flip-inside-out maneuver. We responsible dog owners are immediately recognizable by the little bags of poop we carry around until we can find a suitable trash receptacle (which my recycling bin is NOT, thank you very much). It may seem counterintuitive, but a person is actually more approachable when he or she is carrying a bag of poop. This signals that the person is a) responsible and b) not above a little scut work when the occasion demands it.

In general, my neighborhood has a high percentage of responsible dog owners. And a pretty reasonable tolerance for the irresponsible ones, in that the place is not littered with “Curb Your Dog” signs.  The church across the street is an exception, but I don't blame them since there’s a school attached. You don’t want the kids tracking it inside after recess. And to their credit, the church has a sense of humor about it:

But there is one block in this whole neighborhood where the local dog poop norms and mores don't seem to apply. On this one block, several houses have signs which suggest “Don’t even think about letting your dog poop in my yard!”

I'm OK with "please clean up after your dog" signs. But not to let a dog poop in the first place? Is this a concern at the possibility that a mere molecule of poop could be left behind? Hmm, sounds like there may be some control issues?

In this context, I find the headless pooping dog on the right particularly disturbing.

What is also odd is that, on this same block, one house has a statue of St Francis of Assisi. And that yard always has bags of poop lined up against the fence.

I have pondered why this one block exhibits such atypical attitudes and behaviors toward poop compared with the rest of the neighborhood. I have imagined a number of scenarios how this microcosm could have evolved. Some scenarios do not reflect the general friendliness of my environs (but would make a good short play - "Poop Wars"). So all I'll say that St Francis really IS an animal lover if he doesn't mind all that poop piling up!

Lesson: ya gotta take the not so good with the good. Life's a package deal.

Not really a "Be Like Bob" lesson, but I wouldn't have learned it if it weren't for Bob, so...

Good lesson. Thanks Bob.