r/Dogfree • u/Brave-Cat-8038 • 18h ago
Dog Culture Picking up your dog poo is a humiliation ritual
I was catching up with with my friend (fellow dog-hater) over drinks on a patio and in the sidewalk next to the restaurant, we saw a dog shit itself and the owner of course picked it up. Then it had me thinking how it must be so embarrassing to pick up your dog’s poo?? How are these people not embarrassed? I’m embarrassed even just watching them do it and I feel like I have to look away in order to give the owner a little bit of dignity. Is this normal? Picking up your dog poop is truly a humiliation ritual if I ever did see one.
Also, shame where it’s due on the owners that DONT pick up their dog’s poo and forces some poor city worker to pay for their sins. SMH!
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u/icenerveshatter 16h ago
They deserve it. It sucks bc even if they do pick it up there is still shit residue on the ground. The damage is done.
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u/pro-eukaryotes 15h ago
Even if it doesn't touches your hands, you have to feel the turd through the bag in your hand, everyday as you pick that up.
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u/Muchadoaboutfluffing 10h ago
I just threw up a little in my mouth as I visualized this. Haha yes, so goddamn gross.
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u/IloveEvyJune 3h ago
The one and only time I picked up dog poop I’ll never forget…
My best friend’s family just got a beagle puppy. I was sooooo jealous. I slept over at her house one weekend and their rule was, ‘whoever got to hold the puppy’s leash during a walk also has to pickup any poos.’ I wanted to walk the dog so when it popped they insisted I had to pick it up. I was trying to be a good sport so I grabbed the bag when handed to me. I’ll never forget the smell or especially the feeling of picking up that warm, stinking, heavy, grainy, mushy, pile of humiliation poop. I was no longer jealous and the terrible memories of being bitten on the hand by my own family’s dog came flooding back. I used to resent my parents for getting rid of our dog after that, but now I see that they were shining examples of what you should do when you have an aggressive dog and children.
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u/Mundane_Glove4182 15h ago
You're definitely not alone in feeling secondhand embarrassment when witnessing the poop pickup. When they’re crouching in public, plastic bag in hand, scooping up warm feces, it genuinely makes my stomach turn. Just yesterday, I saw a girl struggling to collect her dog’s... let’s call it: "almost-liquid end product." I almost threw up just watching her. Not to mention the environmental impact of plastic poop bags. And of course, leaving dog poop behind is both inconsiderate and gross. The conclusion writes itself: maybe the simplest solution is not having dogs at all.
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u/Ashamed-Worth7984 14h ago
Agreed. Imagine its pretty much the first thing you do every day. Make a coffee, go out to the nearest grass with your mutt, and pick up a hot steaming pile fresh from the backside of your shuddering wretch. Every. single. day.
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u/Muchadoaboutfluffing 10h ago
Imagine dating or having sex with someone who's hand IS CONSTANTLY touching dog shit. Most dont wear gloves either. Hell no. When I see a dating profile with a man with a dog I see shit all over his body. Block!
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u/Bajadasaurus 12h ago
And just think about how many people don't bother to wash their hands properly- or even at all- when they use the restroom.
Do these same people understand it's nasty to be scooping up shit in a flimsy bag? Do they feel the urgent need to get to a hand washing sink? ...Or is it "fine" not to wash up after bagging dog 2's because "it never touches my skin"?
I'm guessing it's the latter.
I'm guessing a fair selection of people use hand sanitizer and think it's as sufficient or actually "more clean" than full hand washing (using soap, water, + mechanical removal).
Almost got me hoping dainty daily fabric gloves come back into fashion for everyday wear, because dog people go everywhere and touch everything these days.
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u/Stock-Bowl7736 9h ago
I've always said that this one thing, more than any other aspect of owning a dog, should be the one thing that would make someone decide to NOT own a dog. It's simply beyond repulsive and indeed is the most undignified thing a human could ever do. I can't understand why this is not more of a disincentive to dog ownership.
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u/mercury_risiing 7h ago
It is not a disincentive because many people don't pick it up. It is the reason I'll find poo on hiking trails, beach sand, residential neighborhoods sidewalks, apartments etc. They'll get the dog and refuse to clean up after it, unless they are forced to.
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u/CycleOLife 3h ago
You got that right. I rolled through dog shit at the entrance to mountain bike trails the other day. I was on my way out to go home. I was totally disgusted when I went to load my bicycle up and smelled dog crap on my tires. Truly disgusting and I was pissed. The mindset that it's OK to let your dog shit in the middle of the trail, but it's "in nature" so they don't need to pick it up. SMH
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u/Frankly_Ridiculous 9h ago
They can't hear me as I drive by, but I always say, "Do you feel good about that? Picking up something else's excrement? That make you feel good? Loser."
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u/dropdeadsatisfactory 7h ago
Whenever I've had to walk someone else's dog (house-sitting) I have a tendency to yell at the dog itself 😅 I'm not proud of it, but immediately dropping a dump less than a minute after we've begun the daily walk is a sure fire way to get my rage up! "Nah, great idea man, why poop at home where I can leave it to dry when we could have so much more fun watching me try to scrape your mess into this flimsy little bag?! Keep walking actually, I love when you leave a trail of nuggets like the world's worst Easter Hunt. Don't forget to walk forward a few steps before you make a few token dirt kicks to really ensure you do nothing to bury it whatsoever!"
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u/Ability-Junior 9h ago
Here in italy id say a good 50% doesnt even pick it up.
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u/JojoReplayView 2h ago
Same in France, even in "rich" cities 🙄 Taking a walk in the streets in this country = smelling dog shit everywhere and playing a game of avoiding stepping in it!
I wish our governments would threaten to outlaw all dogs if owners don’t take this more seriously.
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u/Excellent-Can-7524 10h ago
It is humiliating I had to pick up dog shit for my boyfriend's sisters dog when she went away on holiday and wanted us to look after her two dogs. When walking then and picking up the dog shit I nearly threw up 🤢 the smell was knocking me sick and feeling it through the bag 🤢🤢 makes me so glad I don't have a dog of my own
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u/Nice-Loss6106 5h ago
You’d think that picking up fresh warm shit would be more of a deterrent. Dog people are damaged
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u/FieryFalcon26 6h ago
I once saw a dog owner trying to clean his dog's diarrhea on a pedestrian main street. As much as it was humiliating, props to the poor guy for not leaving it there.
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u/NebulaImmediate6202 4h ago
It's weird to fuss about it. So it depends. If you play it up, the grossness, thats weird. You signed up for this activity willingly. Do it and dont complain, you wanted to.
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u/Top_Fill7182 4h ago
Yes, it's embarassing but I'd rather they do it than dirtying the surrounding and other people's property. It's a consequence of the choice they made.
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u/dropdeadsatisfactory 7h ago
I've looked after dogs as a housesitter from time to time and it's genuinely just awful. Don't forget that once you've managed to bag it (a real struggle as it's fresh and crumbles apart... you've not felt truly degraded until you realise you're squatted on the nature strip, trying to dig up pieces of poo from the dirt with a plastic scoop), you then get the walk of shame of carrying around a sack of putrid waste up and down the neighbourhood until you find a bin.
I cannot for the life of me fathom how 'take the dog for a walk' is an often-recommended strategy for mental health. I return home stressed and frantic for a shower every time.
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u/Electronic_Law_1288 5h ago
It is and I was about to post that the other day when I noticed most of my neighbors looking not happy when they pick up their dog poo. I think some of these ppl are willing to pick dogs poo over making an effort to connect with ppl
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u/Huge_Virus_8148 4h ago
Even if I was willing to overlook every other downside of dog ownership, this would still deter me from ever owning one.
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u/CallousCow1762 3h ago
Yes! Not only humiliating but the drudgery of having to do this every single day no matter the weather. And you can tell they’re suffering through it. Every time I see someone walking their dog they’re either on the phone or have a bored or frustrated expression on their face.
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u/Silmarillien 3h ago
I see many people walking their dogs where I live. The worst is when I have my breakfast and I see someone passing by holding a dangling bag knowing it's shit in there. It ruins my appetite. Another time, a girl was walking her fluffy dog which got diarrhea. She stopped there and started wiping its ass. I was like, subjecting yourself to wiping the shit of an animal's ass is the most pathetic thing ever. You willingly chose to become an animal's slave.
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u/Trick-Pitch9512 2h ago
I always say you have to be mentally unstable if you voluntarily walk a filthy beast around along with its hot dog shit in hand, wrapped up in a little plastic bag. And this is how dog nutters start their day, every morning.
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u/JojoReplayView 2h ago
Lmaooo I swear it must be that! Dog owners have a thing for dog shit and its smell. I mean, how else would they even accept having a dog? Some owners have gardens full of dog shit, I can’t even bear to pass by their houses but they smell it 24/7 without problem, I bet they like it 🤢
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u/Alocin_The5th 17h ago
I hear ya. On one hand they need to pick it up because if they don’t that’s nasty. But the idea that so many people are ok with owning an animal that you have to walk behind and pick up their waste is beyond degrading. Every poop bag makes its way into the landfill. These plastic bags will be around long after the dog and its owner are gone.