Parks, sidewalks, and trails are used by everyone in the community, including dog-walkers. Picking up after your dog is very important, not only for people's health and safety, but it helps keep our City looking and smelling beautiful.
An Issue of Health
Recent studies suggest that the average dog produces about 340 grams of fecal matter dailyy! It's frightening to learn that a single gram of poo can contain an estimated 23 million bacteria. Bacteria such as campylobacter, E.coli, salmonella, yersiniosis, cyclospora, cryptosporidium, giardia, and parasitic worms. It's a list of horror, filled with nasties you may or may not have heard of but you definitely don't want to catch.
By leaving your dog's waste on the ground you increase not only the likelihood of someone stepping in it but potentially getting sick from it.
But It Degrades Naturally...
It's true that pet waste will degrade and disappear over time, but it's not a fertilizer and health issues remain. As the waste disintegrates and breaks down, bacteria enters into the local watersheds.
Studies have shown that 20 to 30 percent of bacteria in water samples from urban watersheds can be linked to dog waste.
Dispose of Poo Properly
To make disposing of dog waste convenient, we've placed Dog Waste Containers all over the City.
Under Metro Vancouver regulations, pet waste is prohibited from the region's garbage, but small amounts are accepted in household garbage or public garbage cans (i.e. in parks or on the street). However, Metro Vancouver estimates that approximately 10,000 tonnes of pet waste ends up in the landfill, where it decomposes and generates methane, a powerful greenhouse gas that's approximately 21 times more potent than CO2. The goal is to limit the amount of pet waste going to the landfill.
You can dispose of dog and other pet waste in a variety of environmentally responsible ways - learn more on our Dog Waste Program page.
Want Your Own Dog Poo Fairy Sign?
If you'd like to place a dog waste notice on your property, you can download the printable There’s no such thing as a dog poo fairy sign. Please don't make any alterations to the sign design.
Tips for using the sign:
- To protect against weather damage, laminate at a stationery store, have it printed on corrugated plastic at a print shop, or use a plastic cover.
- Mount the sign by stapling it to a small wooden stake or attach to a metal frame.