Recently I was talking to an elderly Beagle, Jake, who spent his whole life living on the seacoast.  You know how old timers are, always telling stories about the good old days.  But as I listened to him tell me about all the beaches and parks where dogs were allowed during his youth and are banned from today, it got me thinking.  Why have dogs been banned from so many places?  He told me it is a rather complicated issue, but one of the key factors is people not picking up their dog’s poop.

As a young and naive puppy, I foolishly thought Mom and Dad brought my specimens home with them because they were proud of my accomplishments.  But then I saw Dad hauling it away to the dump one day.  I suppose one could say Lemmy was an environmentalist.  He hated the sight of poop, and would refuse to come inside our house unless someone removed it right away from our backyard; even if it was in the middle of the night and pouring rain.  He was even more insistent on walks!  Let’s just say that when being walked by relatives not all of them carried bags.  I can remember being so embarrassed one time when Lemmy laid down on the side of the road and refused to continue our walk until the offending human picked it up.  It resulted in that person awkwardly knocking on a neighbor’s door to get a bag!

But today is Earth Day, and I have to admit I’m torn between this need to be clean versus being environmentally friendly.  It seems counterintuitive to be putting our organic waste into a plastic bag.  But upon closer examination of the bags that Mom and Dad use, I realize they are Biodegradable Pet Waste Bags!  So I can rest assured each time I am out in public I am empowering myself and other dogs to continue having access to beautiful parks and beaches, while also helping the planet.  Way to go Mom and Dad!