5 Important Reasons to Clean Up Pet Waste

Dealing with pet waste is one of those topics that every pet owner must deal with but no one likes to talk about. The fact is that the majority of community and neighborhood pet problems result from the inappropriate handling of pet waste. In addition, pet waste is the greatest source of potential health risk for your pet and your family. This article will highlight the five most important reasons to properly dispose of pet waste and will also give you some tips and products to make this chore easier. #1. Disease Control There are several very common diseases that can be transmitted to dogs, cats and people through feces. These include giardia, roundworms, salmonella, and Ecoli. In addition, your dog can spread or contract parvovirus or coronavirus through infected feces. All of these diseases are very serious and common and every effort should be made by pet owners to keep their pets and family away from potentially infected feces. One of the easiest ways to do this is to install an in-ground stool digester like the Doggie Dooley. These digesters work like mini septic systems, safely breaking down feces and then allowing the residue to harmlessly sink into the surrounding soil. These handy little gadgets are one of the best ways that I’ve ever found to deal with dog or cat waste. #2. Make your Yard more Useable Nobody likes to walk through a yard that is hiding “doggie land mines.” If you and your children are afraid to use your yard because of the dog, then you are wasting one of your biggest time and financial investments. In addition, the pets will get less interactive exercise and suffer as well. Once or twice a day ‘scooping’ off your yard with a shovel or Grabber pet waste shovel will only take a couple of minutes and make it a place where everyone enjoys spending time. #3. Fly Control Flies will consume and lay eggs in feces. These same flies will then come into your house and then spread disease as they pause on your counter and food. Need I say more about keeping feces cleaned up to prevent this cycle? #4. Responsible Pet Ownership Your responsibility to clean up after your pet doesn’t end when your dog leaves your yard. There are probably fewer things that aggravate neighbors more than a dog that ‘goes’ in their yard. Pet owners need to clean up after their pet every time they go to the bathroom. Period. No exceptions. If you are walking in the woods and your dog goes, then bury it. If you are in a park or neighborhood, pick it up with a plastic bag or a Dispoz-a-Scoop. If you don’t have a yard, then walk your dog on a leash. Don’t make your responsibility somebody else’s problem. #5. Preventing Stool Eating While most dog owners think this doesn’t apply to them or their dog, the shocking truth is that most dogs will engage in this unsavory practice at some point in their life. Dogs evolved as carnivore/scavengers and feces were considered fair game in lean times. To prevent this occasional indiscretion from becoming a life-long habit, clean up feces as soon as possible, especially in young dogs where the problem is most prevalent. At the first sign of this bad habit consider adding an oral product like Dis-Taste to your dog’s food to decrease the palatability of the stools.