One of my biggest pet peeves is when people don't pick up after their dog when they're walked in the neighborhood and downtown off of Main Street. It's just gross. According to BioPet Laboratories, one dog dropping contains 3 billion bacteria. Because it does not evaporate, the poop goes into the air and ground water, creating major contamination.
They also tell the Rental Housing Journal,
"Studies have shown that waste from 100 dogs, in one day on a river bank, can contaminate the water for 1 mile downstream."
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How gross is that? With that in mind, pet poop can be a problem and can affect an entire apartment community and pit tenant neighbor against tenant neighbor.
Some property management companies and landlords are using fines to enforce the rules and male sure pet owners pick up after their pets. Others are taking this up a notch. There is a growing number of apartment complexes finding a solution in a variety of companies that handle the pet DNA testing necessary to fix the poop pick-up problem. This is definitely one way to make pet owners accountable and responsible for picking up their dog's poop.
How does it work?
- You swab the inside of your dog's mouth so you can provide a sample of your dog's DNA to a company recommended by your property management company or landlord
- When your landlord or neighbor finds poop in the yard they can send a sample to that company that will identify your dog
In Hendersonville, Tennessee, people are complaining as an apartment complex is requiring a pet deposit and a DNA sample from all the dogs in the building. WSMV News interviewed a tenant that recently adopted a dog,
"When you think DNA testing, right, you think criminals. You think warrants and getting DNA testing. You don't think about getting it on your pets to diagnose its poo."
Dog DNA companies are going to make a killing if these types of rules become a trend!
A condo complex in Brooklyn is also implementing this new rule. The New York Times tells us,
"What was happening wasn't merely gross, it was also getting expensive. So in December, the board decreed that all dogs in the building had to be registered and have their DNA tested, allowing stealth excrement to be matched to what we'll euphemistically call the dogs' wayward owners."
It seems like there are cheaper ways to do this!
The simple answer is, just pick up your dog's poop. Some owners are using biodegradable poop bags!
https://www.instagram.com/p/BwVKYhIAih6/
Dog owners should realize that dog waste should never be left for someone else to take care of! Other dogs may have bad habits and want to roll in it or worse, eat it! You must clean up! I don't blame property owners for implementing dog poop DNA policies but it does put a financial burden on pet owners which seems over the top!
Have you ever forgotten a poop bag while taking your dog for a walk? Please leave a comment and let us know what you did!
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