Scoop your pet’s poop

We, as a society, are a hypocritical lot when it comes to cleanliness. While most of us take care to keep our homes tidy, we don’t bat an eyelid before littering elsewhere. Rather, we take umbrage to anybody confronting us on this dirty habit. Whether it pertains to throwing or sweeping the litter towards the neighbour’s side or letting a pet relieve itself anywhere, we believe that keeping the locality clean is somebody else’s duty — of the municipal staff. Despite solid waste management laws prohibiting the dirtying of parks and other public spaces and fines for such offences, their poor implementation has led to a sense of impunity.

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Particularly grave is the problem of pet parents’ unwillingness to scoop the poop of the animal and dispose it of properly. Besides being a repugnant sight, the poop is a health hazard as it attracts germs. Dog lovers must understand that the canines are not akin to cuddly children for all. Many people are petrified of them, their bark and bite. Pet etiquette calls for leashing the dogs when out and training them to behave well with scared strangers. They must own responsibility and scoop the poop using scoop sticks, newspaper, recyclable plastic pouches or gloves and knot it up before throwing it in the nearest bin.

With large-scale flouting of norms, it is not surprising that the authorities find it difficult to curb the menace. The Shimla Municipal Corporation’s decision to name and shame offenders by displaying their photos on a screen at the Mall has not had the desired effect; it has now warned of punitive action against the errant dog parents. To send the message home, it is important to supplement penal action with societal pressure by involving local resident welfare organisations in every town and city. In these days of social media campaigns, photos and video clips of celebrities and ordinary folks challenging all with a ‘I scoop my dog’s poop, do you?’ query could help trigger a change in the mindset.