Originally published at: French mayor who is implementing dog passports to curb out-of-control poop: "I can't stand it anymore" | Boing Boing
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people not picking up after their dogs is a symptom of a lack of civility in France
This local mayor has never been to Paris, then. The most uncivilised place around, on this basis.
And this from 2016 (ok, so things may have improved since, but my experience is that the French are way behind when it comes to ‘getting’ the need to pick up their dogs’ poop) is about Montpellier.
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Sooo, how much does it cost to DNA sequence a dog turd? Cos those seem like some paltry fines to pay for going all CSI on the local Chiens and their lackadaisical owners. Where’s the money coming from?
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This same pool, I’d imagine. Those figures range from 60-90 turds per day. May not seem like much, but I sure as shit wouldn’t want my crew doing that. Things like this also engender a sense of civic responsibility and make it less acceptable to be a careless asshole. The US used to have a massive litter problem. I remember driving down any road as a kid and seeing every ditch just flowing with trash. Then they implemented pretty steep fines and ad campaigns to change the culture and it improved dramatically.
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truth! when we went to Provence almost 20 years ago, we were flabbergasted at the amount of dog crap everywhere. it’s like… come ON, people! Europe may have figured out a lot of things that we haven’t here, but props to Americans for instilling the social niceties of picking up after our dogs!
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It’s pretty much like that in the UK now. Most owners clean up after their dogs.
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was literally coming to the comments to mention Montpellier (which is quite close to Béziers). When I was living there, with a dog, random people would thank me for picking up his… leavings, it was that uncommon for people to do.
Which: I don’t enjoy this activity and do not wish to talk about it with others, how about instead you yell at the assholes who aren’t cleaning up their shit?
Paris, at least, had ‘motocrottes’ helping clean up (basically little shop-vacs mounted on scooters).
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So, how does one register for this program? I assume you put a fresh steamer in an envelope, write the dog’s name on it, then mail to the city? As in, here’s Roget’s DNA sample you asked for.
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When I was in Paris, we would often see people pulling their dogs away from curbs to ‘do their business’ right in the center of a sidewalk or directly in the entrance to a building.
I hear jokes based on this here in Quebec, that all the French who couldn’t stand this type of thing moved over the ocean to get away.
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Point being? I mean, why in the world would people do that?
There’s even an old joke that goes “Q: How do you spot an American in Paris? A: They’re the only picking up the shit from their dog.”
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What I really can’t understand is the phenomenon of people bagging their dog’s poop, then littering those bags in neighbor’s yards or bushes, which happens a lot in my area. If you’re a big enough jerk to leave litter then why even go through the trouble if bagging it first?
And FWIW, my understanding is that the situation in Paris has improved a bit in recent years. During my visit a few years ago everyone I saw did pick up after their dog.
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I’m guessing “you can’t make me” reaction. Like it’s a lifestyle choice.
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I’ll have you know that #NotAllEuropeans! Here in UK not poop-scooping is a heinous social crime these days. Not sure about other bits of Europe (and yeah, I’m still European in UK even if we are not in the EU) but this may be more of a country-cultural thing.
(ETA As @GilbertWham already noted re UK.)
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and
well, sadly, i have not been to the UK (yet) – really want to go, though! sorry, i didn’t mean to disparage all Europeans, but it sure was prevalent in the south of France and in Hungary.
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This whole program is not as nuts as it might sound. DNA registration for poop identification is becoming surprisingly common. I’ve read of a number of cities starting to do this. I think it’s one of those things that costs a bunch up front, but over time costs drop to near zero as you get the populace trained.
It’s about the messaging as much as anything. Once everyone understands you’re serious about this, people alter their behaviour.
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This! I do not understand the thinking behind this; why go to the trouble of bagging, and then leave it behind? You’re just adding a layer of plastic to the problem.
step 1. collect annoying neighbour’s dog’s poop.
step 2 . plant collected poop on steps of l’hôtel de ville.
step 3 . gleefully watch neighbour’s mail box to catch the moment they get the fine.
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