Dog Poop in Your Backyard - How Do You Deal with It?

I've recently moved in with a dog and I was wondering what other people do with their own dog's poop. I'm also curious what the process is when it comes to mowing the grass with potential dog poops. Do they matter or is it a smell explosion waiting to happen?

Mainly just getting an understanding of what the options are / what works best / what is easiest. How well does a poop scoop work? Do you use poop bags? Thanks!

FYI the dog is a super cute medium sized dog, so the poops aren't quite pebbles from a little dogs, nor are they giant logs :)

Poll Options

  • 40
    Pick up poop from grass every time it happens, or every day
  • 57
    Pick up poop from grass at a set interval (weekly, monthly, etc.)
  • 8
    Only pick it up before mowing the grass, or having a pool party / yard event
  • 2
    Dog poops only on walks / in the park (never in my own backyard)
  • 3
    Dog poops on a fake grass / designated poop location
  • 12
    Never pick it up. The rain will get it...

Comments

  • +1

    Chuck it in the compost a few times a week.

    • +6

      Just not in compost that will used on food for human consumption.

    • Renting at the moment so not sure we can add a compost bin here. Would love to have a compost when I have the space, though!

      • +2

        Space is one thing, but there's no reason you can't have a compost bin while renting.

  • +2

    Clean it up

  • +9

    Came here thinking it was someone else's dog, but it was OP's.

    I've recently moved in with a dog

    Since you are the owner.

    Pick up it.

    Don't step on it.

    Simples.

    • +1

      Came here thinking it was someone else's dog, but it was OP's.

      Oops! I see how it can be interpreted that way haha

      I'm definitely on the "pick it up" train, I was just wondering how diligent people are in terms of doing it twice a day or once a week type thing

  • +2

    I do a weekly pickup, depends on how often you use your backyard for other things IMO.

    Haven't tried it before, but probably best not to mow the grass with poops still lying around.

    A trowel works fine for most occasions, sometimes a stick as well to help.

    • +1

      eh, I sometimes mow over the poop, spreads it out over the grass, good fertilizer, and you then dont have to pick it up lol

  • +2

    QLDers

    love it

    leave it, mother earth will solve it, until it rains and floods and you have dog pop in the house, along with other crap….

    • If had an acreage I reckon I'd be fine leaving it until it's gone back into the soil. My yard is a little smaller, though, and things would quickly build up into a dense minefield

    • +1

      Clip on bag….haha
      .

  • +1

    I do a weekly cleanup (unless it has been dropped in an inconvenient location - eg path). If you leave it out too long it attracts rats who love that stuff.

    • +1

      I was already weary of stepping on it, and flies… but rats?! Damn, even more to watch out for now. Thanks for the heads up!

  • +1

    Daily or immediately if i see them going - live in a terrace and they have on occasion stepped in their own poop and tracked it through the house!

  • +3

    Please, for the love of all that is holy, do NOT do what my neighbor does and just throw them in your fire place. From mid May till about mid Sept., he just scoops up his dogs turds and throws them in his wood heater.

    • +1

      I'm guessing it doesn't leave lavender scented smoke around the neighbourhood…

  • +1

    Haha, who reported this literal shitpost?

    OP, I have two little dogs and a very big apartment balcony so I usually just wear a disposable glove on one hand and have a little poo bag in the other, collect the shit every 1-2 days, package it up nicely with my kitchen garbage and then throw it down the garbage chute.

    • Ooh, I hadn't thought of disposable gloves. Probably makes picking up a few of them easier compared to using a bag. Nice tip!

      • +1

        I literally picked up dog shit about an hour before I saw this post. The disposable gloves are good because you're only using one at a time and so the pack will last twice as long.

    • ^This

      I use disposable glove on one hand, woolies bag in the other and pick it up twice a week, or if im going to use the yard. (single and no kids, i dont really run around out there).

      Tie off the bag and put in garabge bin.

  • +1

    Don't mow over it, just makes gross poopy spots in your lawn haha. It doesn't explode though.

    We're renting. We do a 'poop scoop' probably once a week.

    We have a poo composter.

    Buy a poo composter and a shovel. Dig a hole (about 50cm diameter and 50cm deep), put the composter in there and fill the remainder of the hole with dirt, leaving just the lid of the composter sticking out. Put the dog poo in the composter.

    We have a 50kg German Shepherd and have to dig a new hole maybe once every 6-9mo, with a smaller dog it would be much less frequent. It's absolutely fine to do this as a renter imo unless you have a very small backyard. If you're worried about it, just put something over it when you have an inspection (like an upside down pot plant or something).

    • How often do you have to purchase some more of the mixture? Seems like this could be costly over time.

      • Idk man, don't think we ever used the mixture tbf.

  • We have a velcro dog so we're always aware of when he poops and pick it up immediately. If we're not home, we do a poop-search daily and pick it up.

    Unless you don't use your yard, the sight and smell of dog poop is so horrendous I don't know how one could leave it longer than a day.

    Those days when I take him outside poop on the nature strip (where no one walks, picked up), and save my backyard, are a blessing.

    • +1

      velcro dog

      RIP

  • depends also if the dog is also an inside dog as well…

    i can imagine those that leave dog poop all over the yard,then dog goes out and walks around potentially stepping on it, and then returns to the comfort of your lap or couch..

    we have an inside dog that pees and poos on a mat that's both inside and outside, and no where else usually,

    • Sometimes the dog likes to roll around, enthusiastically, in the grass. Not too keen on patting an extra brown dog…

  • +3

    Have picking up the dog poo be your job because you're the one who wanted the dog, then get children, then invent transgressions to punish them with, and make picking up dog poo be the punishment, then never have to do your job ever.

    Signed, my dad

  • +2

    Correct, it is a smell explosion waiting to happen. Even when it's white and dry, if you hit it with the lawnmower you will get a nasty surprise. Pick that sh** up before mowing. Also a good idea not to leave it sitting there as dogs tend not to cover their poop and the smell can linger when fresh or waft over to the neighbours house.

  • +1

    I'm mad…and that's a fact
    I found out…animals don't help
    Animal think…they're pretty smart
    Sh*t on the ground…see in the dark.

    David Byrne, Animals

  • +1

    we let them go, and then at the end of the week (the night before rubbish gets collected), we grab a plastic glove and a bag, and pick it all up. Sometimes i'll grab it as they do it, and then flush it down the toilet (with a rubber glove, don't flush the rubber glove down the toilet)

  • our council provides compostable bags, pick it up daily into a small bin the bags fit and the goes into weekly green waste pickup.

  • Gota wonder about people these days lol

    • Which ones? The every day pick up, or the never pick up?

  • +1

    like cars with full ashtrays, i sell it once yard is full of shit and buy a new one

  • +1

    Winter in Canberra is awesome for dog poop collection. sub zero morning means they are all hard as rocks and a quick whip around on a cold morning is fast and easy.

    • Huh that is a good point. I'm sure in summer they're going to be much more soft and warm. Guess there are perks to winter haha

      • yep, summer I wait a day or two for them to dry out, nothing worse than going to pickup or scoop a poop and finding it is mush. Winter the best as a paper towel to pickup and drop in plastic bag, summer just a pooper scooper.

  • We have a shovel with a broken handle we use to pick up with and a designated plastic bucket, pick up at least once a week usually day of green bin pick up and toss the contents of plastic bucket 🪣 into green bin.

  • 🐕 poop bags, pick it up daily and bin it

  • Most dogs are pretty regular. Mine mostly poos on the walk and I pick it up and put in a bin. If I see a poop in the garden or yard, very rare, I deal with it immediately.

  • +1

    We used to use bread bags to pick up the poop. It’s why it’s better to have a cat sometimes because they mostly prefer to go outside and bury it

  • Giant logs lol

  • Train the dog to drop it in one area and clean up regularly, dog poo can cause brain damage to dogs if not cleaned up rugularly

  • +1

    Two options
    1 Pickup poop when you can be bother and just before mowing

    2 My uncles favourite. Mow the poop to pick them up, must make sure it’s had a few days to dry.
    Listen for the ‘thunks’ as you mow.

  • +1

    We use a pooper scooper like this one. It makes the job easy and no need to touch the pool at all. Then bag it and bin it. Definitely do it before mowing but have occasionally just mowed over it. https://www.bunnings.com.au/pet-waste-scooper_p0134374

  • Get a pet poo worm farm from bunnings.. let the worms turn it into fertilizer for the garden. They are great!

    One quick check and shovel scoop every 3 days into the worm farm works well.

  • ive got a herd of dung beetles

  • I have some long handle tongs with a wide end, makes picking up hard ones easy (and putting them in to a recycled bag), leave them out in the rain and it cleans them enough. They can even handle softer ones due to the wide end, BBQ tongs would probably work too.

  • good news: Coles just sold out of them pooper scoopers, last ones went for 99c each!

  • Mow straight over them

  • Unless it is an issue and there is a lot if it, perhaps hose ti down to break up and dry. it is great for the soil and then just mow over it. Alternatively get some biodegradable poop bags and pick it up and put it in the bin

    • Do you hose it down after every poop? Or does the dog run around and trod all through / over / into the poops and brings it back inside in between hoses?

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