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Dog owners should be ashamed of their winter laziness | Opinion

Mohammed Adam: The melting snow and ice is exposing dog poo hidden underneath, and making walking on public pathways rather messy.

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Is it just me, or has anyone else noticed that as the weather warms up, the melting snow is exposing dog poo hidden underneath, making walking on public pathways rather messy and untidy. Put a foot wrong, and you land in a pile of ‘you know what’ to take home, or wherever you are headed. It can be nasty.

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My south-end neighbourhood has many pathways that make walking, running, and exercising a delight. But as is often the case, the melting snow and ice create pools of water on sections of the pathways. And to avoid the water-logged pathways as you make your way around the melting ice, that’s when you encounter the dissolving waste. Before you know it, it is splattering all over your boots.  Sometimes, you have to navigate the poop landscape as if walking through a minefield, which, come to think of it, it can be in its own unique way.

My unofficial survey includes talking to several neighbours, random people, and friends in other neighbourhoods, and there’s no question this is a problem, particularly in winter. The issue is not the pets, but irresponsible owners who don’t pick up after them because they can’t be bothered.

I know that in the urban setting, this can be part of life. People love pets, as they should. Pets make great companions and become part of the family. Like us, they have to respond to nature’s call. So, if you are going to have a pet, know that it comes with some responsibility, one of which is to pick up after them. Most people do the right thing, but there are enough of us who don’t bother, and that creates littering, which can be a public health hazard. There are city signs warning people to pick up after their pets or face fines, and the regulations are largely effective in the summer. But this is not because poop police are all over parks and pathways issuing tickets. It is largely because of public shaming. So many people are outdoors and watching in the summer that it is difficult to not pick up after your pet. Someone or the other is likely to see it and call you out. I am sure some of you have seen it happen, but sometimes, calling out someone can lead to unexpected confrontations, and people usually try to avoid them by staying silent.

In winter, the problem appears to be much worse because fewer people are out and about. Now that I am not driving and having to walk more, often to catch a bus, I am seeing more of it. Unfortunately, it seems there’s not much anyone, including the city, can do about this mess. The city has its prohibitive bylaws, but I doubt it has squads of bylaw officers ready scramble into action. Besides, if a lot of this is happening at night, the city can’t police what it can’t see.

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What we can all do though, is to appeal to the conscience and sense of community of the errant pet owners to help keep our parks and pathways clean. Not all pathways have this problem, and this may not be an issue at all where you live. But I have talked to enough people across the city to believe that it is not just my part of town that is facing this problem. There is enough of it in the city to warrant someone like me to ruin your morning breakfast with tales of dog poo. Sorry, but someone has to raise this.

Mohammed Adam is an Ottawa journalist and commentator. Reach him at nylamiles48@gmail.com

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