Pooping

Last night we were headed home from dinner out; we were discussing diapers for Tilley as I had to stop and purchase more.  I told my son that she was wearing the largest size for children and that the next size up only came in pull-ups.  He asked "what the heck are pull-ups" and "did I wear those?"  I explained and told him no, there were no pull-ups when he was little.  After that the discussion went to poop and we ended up laughing about my first dog Mandy, an Airedale.

Mandy was a water dog through and through; every inch of her was made to swim and swim she did.  Each year we would take her to the cottage and all summer we got her out to swim as much as possible at the nearby lakes.  One of Mandy's favorite things to do was to poop in the water.  As soon as we arrived she headed straight for the water; and almost like clockwork she'd be hunched over shoulder deep taking a dump.  No one else knew what she was doing; that is of course until the goods floated ashore.  This was not something that I encouraged; the act itself tends to send people packing.   Hmmm; maybe she was doing us a favor, it is nice to have the lake to yourself.

 Once we got home after dinner we sat out by the pool (kiddie pool) while the poodles fetched their toys from the depths.  Luke got a look on his face and dashed off; he is very clean and will not relieve himself where we are hanging out.  Through the fence I could see that he was having issues; let's just say messy issues but I was not worried.  You see Luke's pooping form saves us from much cleaning up after the fact.  He hunches himself over so much that his butt is literally pointing downwards and there is no way that even one drop is going to be touching him.  A perfect "10" I say.

There are a lot of different ways that dogs "go."  Some are very talented like Luke; others not so much.  Tilley is what I'd call very average; she'd fit in with the general population as far as form.  Jessie is a traveler, never stopping to smell the roses while going; she is on a mission and keeps on trucking.  Picking up after a traveler becomes a follow the trail sort of chore.  I knew a dog that would not go in front of people or dogs and would always go to the middle of a bush to secretly do her business.  Then there is the complete opposite, those who will drop it where you stand.  I've known several of these.

Clyde, who has now been gone over 11 years use to dump on top of tiny bushes or trees.  He lived most of his life with us back in Canada and when we did much of our baby tree planting, Clyde was in heaven.  Unfortunately I had a great deal of baby trees to save on a weekly basis.  Luke likes to go on top of things when he is out for a walk as well; small bushes or baby trees suffice although it does make it difficult to pick up.  Live with dogs; pick up poop, it's part of life.  And we have to pick it up even if it hasn't touch the ground yet.

Every dog owner has gone through the traumatic experience of "grass poop."  You know the ones that are not willing to let go; hanging on for that perfect moment when a group of people walk by.  There you are standing waiting; waiting and hoping for the last piece to fall but it does not, it will not fall off.  Some dogs will drop their butts to the ground and attempt to remove it themselves; but this only adds a much worse issue to deal with.  You learn over the years to get in there fast and just git r done.  If you are like my husband you are most likely gagging or nearly passing while picking up the dreaded "grass poop,"  but once you've done it a dozen times or so it gets easier; even for the most squeamish types.

Over the years I've seen quite a few dogs who have.....................let's just say, oblivious owners.  There dog is carrying quite a bit of poop with them.  More often it is a long hair or furry type dog; the kind that demand more grooming.  But for some unknown reason; perhaps sheer "I'm not cleaning that," they leave the crap there to collect more.  Over time it can grow and grow; sort of like a snowball effect, becoming a real problem for the dog.  These folks send their dog off to the groomers where the poor groomer has to deal with mound of s(*$.  No fun, no fair and not right.

Have a look at the other end every so often and make sure that all is good.  If there is anything there that shouldn't be; clean it up.  It is your dog after all; which means it's your job, it comes with the job.