In The ‘Burbs, there is a dog whose owner lets it out to do its business on the neighbor’s front lawn. We just watched the series last week and we couldn’t recall the dog’s name.
“Dora,” I said.
“Daisy,” said my daughter, Alex.
We couldn’t be sure (I had a very strong suspicion that we were both wrong) so I just searched the web. Darla. The dog’s name is Darla. Her owner is Agnes Ferstersen, president of the Homeowners Association (HOA).
Well, we have plenty of real-life stories about dogs pooping on our front lawn and in common areas of the gated neighborhood — the one that we left and in the swankier (for lack of a better term) village where we moved (hoping that residents here would be more responsible and respectful).
Apparently, being a responsible dog owner has nothing to do with how affluent a neighborhood is. There will always be versions of Agnes Festersen. Despite circulars from the Board of Directors of the HOA about the imposition of fine on irresponsible dog owners, some residents still think they are within their rights to simply let their dogs out of the house so they won’t have to deal with poop and pee.
We walk our beagle everyday except when it rains or when either I or my daughter, Alex, is sick. We used to go on our walks in the morning but, lately, with the dry season creeping in, the sunlight can be painful on the skin. It’s that season when the sun seems to be so angry all the time and it just unleashes its rage until it dips below the horizon.
So, we decided we’d take the dog on her daily walk at night. Hours after the sun has set so that the concrete road has cooled a bit in the night air. Dogs don’t wear shoes, after all, and walking on hot surfaces can hurt the sole of their feet.
The problem with walking at night is that it’s harder to spot dog poop on the roads. I almost stepped on a mound once had Alex not warned me. So, we avoid areas with large vacant lots where street lights can’t provide enough illumination to see every square inch of the pavement in front of us.
And, yes, we clean up after our dog. If you notice the objects dangling from the looped end of the dog leash in the two photos above, the green one shaped like an oversized capsule is a canister that contains a roll of dog poop bags (biodegradable, of course), and the white one is a small spray bottle of alcohol for disinfecting the hands after cleaning up. Very cheap accessories you can buy online.
That’s the roll of bags. Just unscrew the upper half of the canister, drop in the roll and screw the top back on.
There is an opening on the side. Tug at the end of the roll so that a small portion of a bag is exposed. That makes it easier to use especially in the dark.
After the dog poops, just pull out the bag until the perforated end is visible. Tear the bag at the perforated end, slip your hand inside the bag, pick up the poop, invert the bag so that the poop falls inside, tie up and dispose of properly at home. And just in case your hand touches the pavement or any piece of poop, use the alcohol and enjoy the rest of your walk.
The suikinkutsu project