Most dog owners know they’re supposed to scoop the poop. 

But when a pup does the deed off the trail, a lot of otherwise responsible citizens find themselves wondering… Is it really better to pick it up in a plastic bag and throw it in the garbage? Isn’t dog poop… natural?

Listen to the latest edition of This, That, or The Other Thing: our series about the little decisions we make in life to try and build a more sustainable world – whether they have any effect and what we can do instead if they don’t. 

This time, we’re wrestling with a major ick factor:  should I leave my dog’s poop in the woods, or put it in a plastic bag and entomb it forever in a landfill? And why do otherwise environmentally-minded folks look the other way when it comes to the impact of our furry friends?

Featuring Stephanie Chow, Anthony Drouin, Ben Goldfarb, Rebecca Perlstein, Forrest Schwartz, Jennifer Williams

SUPPORT

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Submit a question to our Outside/Inbox. We answer queries about the natural world, climate change, sustainability, and human evolution. You can send a voice memo to [email protected] or leave a message on our hotline, 1-844-GO-OTTER (844-466-8837).

LINKS

The Leave No Trace organization studied how to get more people to pick up after their dogs in Boulder’s Open Space and Mountain Parks.

Dog waste is a major source of water pollution.

“Dogs are a beach’s worst nightmare” according to Ben Goldfarb in Hakkai Magazine.

Stephanie Chow of Pet Poo Skiddoo breaks down which dog waste bags are truly compostable here.

CREDITS

Host: Nate Hegyi

Reported and produced by Jessica Hunt.

Mixed by Taylor Quimby.

Edited by Nate Hegyi and Taylor Quimby, with help from Justine Paradis and Rebecca Lavoie.

Executive producer: Rebecca Lavoie.

Music by Blue Dot Sessions, Spring Gang, El Flaco Collective, and Daniel Fridell.

Our theme music is by Breakmaster Cylinder.

Outside/In is a production of New Hampshire Public Radio.

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