Part of being a good pet owner and park visitor is cleaning up after your dog.
“Dent and pick up” is a phrase every pet owner has heard for decades, but park staff are often asked, “why do I have to pick up after my dog when I don’t need to pick up after my dog?” wild animals?”
That is a good question. How is dog poop different from raccoon, coyote, moose, or even bear poop?
It turns out that not all droppings are created equal.
Everything in moderation, including poop!
Wild animals consume food that is produced within their ecosystems.
Once digested, the nutrients return to the ecosystem.
Waste is produced in quantities small enough that decomposers can continue the pathways of component nutrients through the carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus cycles.
Wildlife droppings also play an important role in native plant seed dispersal.
Compare this to dogs, who typically receive a diet of store-bought foods that are very rich in nutrients.
When your dog poops in the park, or anywhere, it leaves behind waste with high amounts of nitrogen and phosphorus that can cause problems at the ecosystem level. [1]
In most parks, our well-groomed companions are present in much larger numbers than wild canid populations and produce more waste than decomposers can keep up with.
Additional nutrients can create conditions in which invasive plant species find it easier to grow and thrive, and decrease overall biodiversity. [2][3]
Ugly, smelly and dangerous.
It is unpleasant to walk in a park with piles of excrement carelessly left for others to see, smell or enter.
But even beyond poor aesthetics, dog poop creates health risks for humans, wildlife, and other dogs.
Dog poop is a source of parasites, bacteria and viruses. These include E. coli, Giardia, Salmonellaintestinal worms and tapeworms. [4] [5] [6] [7] In most cases, our pets are not regularly tested for these organisms and you cannot be sure that your dog is not a disease vector.
Roundworms are a particular problem for wildlife. Roundworm eggs can persist in the soil for years, meaning a single careless feces can infect wildlife for a long time. [8]
Fortunately, there is an easy solution!
Dogs come to our parks with their capable human companions.
When visiting Ontario parks with your pet, it is mandatory to pick up after your dog. Hanging it on a tree doesn’t count!
If you are in the countryside and there are no waste receptacles nearby, treat your dog’s waste as you would human waste. If an outdoor toilet is not available, dispose of solid waste in small dug holes 15 to 20 centimeters deep, at least 30 meters from water, campsites and trails. Replace soil immediately.
Make sure your dog is a park guard dog
A negligent dog owner in a park would not create many problems.
However, our parks are popular dog-friendly destinations. Thousands of small problems combine to create several big ones.
Ontario is home to millions of companion dogs. These dogs produce a huge amount of poop every day and some of this poop ends up in our protected areas.
That’s a lot of nutrients, pathogens, and a nasty mess. It is essential that all pet owners do their part.
Together we can keep our parks protected forever.
[1] De Frenne, P., M. Cougnon, GPJ Janssens and P. Vangansbeke. 2022. Nutrient fertilization by dogs in peri-urban ecosystems. Green Solutions and Evidence 3(1). https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/2688-8319.12128
[2] Tilman, D. 1987. Secondary succession and plant dominance pattern along experimental nitrogen gradients. Ecological Monographs 57(3): 189-214. www.jstor.org/stable/2937080
[3] Bobbink, R., K. Hicks, J. Galloway, T. Spranger, R. Alkemande, M. Ashmore, M. Bustamante, S. Cinderby, E. Davidson, F. Dentener, B. Emmett, JW. Erisman, M. Fenn, F. Gilliam, A. Nordin, L. Pardo, W. De Vries. 2010. Global assessment of the effects of nitrogen deposition on terrestrial plant diversity: a synthesis. Green applications 20(1): 30-59. esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdfdirect/10.1890/08-1140.1?casa_token=RRoP8G0iGXgAAAAA:c2nPjDZ8yMK9SR8E_kRg7oJ0bOZJv5bGmuKvz5VXIxi18MBv2d-qPTVJuoqqUUalLOW983J5f z 9TJlg
[4] Lafferty, KD and LR Gerber. 2002. Good medicine for conservation biology: the intersection of epidemiology and conservation theory. Conservation biology 16(3): 593-604. http://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1046/j.1523-1739.2002.00446.x#b24
[5] Wright, ME, HM Solo-Gabriele, S. Elmir, and LE Fleming. 2009. Microbial load of animal feces on a recreational beach. Marine Pollution Bulletin 58(11): 1649-1656. www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2771205/
[6] Bowers, RM, AP Sullivan, EK Costello, JL Collett, R. Knight, and N. Fierer. 2011. Sources of bacteria in outdoor air in cities in the Midwestern United States. American Society for Microbiology 77(18): 6350-6356. Journals.asm.org/doi/pdf/10.1128/AEM.05498-11
[7] Ward., E. and Giardia in dogs. VCA Animal Hospitals. vcacanada.com/conoce-tu-mascota/giardia-in-dogs
[8] Lynn, MK, JA Morrissey and DF Conserve. 2021. Soil-transmitted helminths in the US: a review of five common parasites and future directions for improved epidemiological research avenues. Current Tropical Medicine Reports 8: 32-42. link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s40475-020-00221-2