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<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2> Good "poop"!!</FONT><BR></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=gmail_quote>On 4/19/07, <B class=gmail_sendername>Karenthia
Barber</B> wrote:</SPAN>
<BLOCKQUOTE class=gmail_quote
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<DIV><FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" face=Verdana size=2><FONT
face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif color=#000080 size=-1>Hello
all,</FONT></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Verdana color=#000080></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Verdana color=#000080>I was asked to post this to our
listserve by a concerned neighbor!</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Verdana color=#000080></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Verdana color=#000080>Let's all take heed and be more
considerate and environmentally responsible.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Verdana color=#000080></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Verdana color=#000080>Thanks,</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Viner Hand ITC" color=#000080>karenthia</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" color=#000000 size=2><FONT
face="Viner Hand ITC" size=-1></FONT></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" face=Verdana color=#000000
size=2><FONT face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif size=-1>In
Baltimore City, you are required to cleanup after your dog anytime it poops in
a public place or on another's property. Failure to do so not only leaves an
unsightly and unhygienic mess for someone else to clean up or step in, but
will also increase harmful bacteria levels in our nearby streams and
waterways. In Baltimore City, this pollution finds its way to the
Patapsco River and the Chesapeake
Bay.<BR></FONT></FONT></DIV></DIV></DIV></FONT>
<BLOCKQUOTE
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<P><FONT face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif size=-1>In addition
to these already good reasons for cleaning up after your pet, not cleaning
up is punishable by a fine of up to $100.<BR></FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif size=-1><B>Q. Why
should I pick up after my dog when other animals (squirrels, birds, etc.)
already use the "great outdoors" as their bathroom?</B></FONT></P><FONT
face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif size=-1></FONT>
<P><FONT face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif size=-1>A. The poop
from the large number of dogs in our neighborhood cannot be adequately or
naturally absorbed into the environment. This is not the case for the birds
and squirrels that call Baltimore City their home. Large, unnatural numbers
of <I>any</I> animal in a small area can cause this problem -- not just
dogs. Rural streams that are home to an unnaturally large number of deer
have been found to have a high fecal coliform (a bacteria found in feces)
level until the deer population is brought under control.</FONT></P><FONT
face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif size=-1></FONT>
<P><FONT face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif size=-1><B>Q.
Doesn't dog poop make good fertilizer?</B></FONT></P><FONT
face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif size=-1></FONT>
<P><FONT face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif size=-1><B>A.</B>
<SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: verdana">Dog poop contains bacteria from your
dog's digestive system that can be passed along to plants.
</SPAN></FONT><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: verdana">Although dog and cat manure
both contain organic nutrients useful to plants, neither is safe to use in
soil containing food crops. Both contain parasitic pathogens that are
harmful to human health. Dog manure can contain the eggs of Toxocara canis
(the common large roundworm), which can also infect humans. It's estimated
that 90% of young puppies are infected with this worm-many are born
infected-and up to 50% of all adult dogs. The eggs can be transferred to the
human mouth by a person's fingers or from foods that have been in contact
with dog feces. Toxocara eggs can remain viable in the soil for up to 10
years depending on environmental conditions. Because no information is known
on the effects hot composting has on Toxocara eggs, it also unsafe to add
dog manure to compost heaps intended for food crops. If you have a dog feces
problem in your garden, remove the feces and take care to use good hygiene
practices (thoroughly washing hands and vegetables) to avoid possible
contamination.</SPAN><FONT style="FONT-FAMILY: verdana"
face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif size=-1> A person can
become ill by eating fruits or vegetables from a plant "fertilized" with dog
poop. Don't use your dog's poop as fertilizer!</FONT></P><FONT
face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif size=-1></FONT>
<P><FONT face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif size=-1><B>Q. What
about the manure I buy at the hardware store? Doesn't this come from farm
animals?</B></FONT></P><FONT face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif
size=-1></FONT>
<P><FONT face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif size=-1><B>A.</B>
Yes, the garden fertilizer manure does come from other animals. However,
these animals have a vegetarian diet and so do not have the harmful bacteria
and worms in their digestive system that carnivorous animals, such as dogs,
can have. Additionally, most store bought manure has been composted or
processed in some other way to make it safer and easier to use as a
fertilizer.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif size=-1><B>Q. Why is
dog poop bad for streams?</B></FONT></P><FONT
face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif size=-1></FONT>
<P><FONT face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif size=-1><B>A.</B>
There are two reasons. First, the bacteria in dog poop can cause serious
diseases in humans, including cholera and dysentery, if contaminated water
comes in contact with an open wound or is ingested. Second, bacteria
requires oxygen in order to live and, as a result, will reduce the amount of
oxygen in the water that is available for fish. Many species of fish cannot
survive in streams that have reduced oxygen levels. </FONT></P><FONT
face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif size=-1></FONT>
<P><FONT face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif size=-1><B>Q. Why is
dog poop bad for the Patapsco River and the Chesapeake Bay?
</B></FONT></P><FONT face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif
size=-1></FONT>
<P><FONT face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif size=-1><B>A.</B>
Slower moving water, such as that found in the Patapsco River and the
Chesapeake Bay, is susceptible to "algae blooms" responsible for large-scale
fish kills. When it rains, fertilizer, dog poop and other nutrient rich
material gets carried into the river and the Chesapeake Bay. This sudden,
unnatural surge of nutrients causes a rapid explosion of the algae
population, called a "bloom". The bloom, which is near the water's surface,
blocks sunlight that is needed by other aquatic life. Additionally, when the
bloom can no longer be sustained, it decays in an environmentally
cataclysmic event that sucks all of the oxygen out of the water, suffocating
and killing any fish that live there.</FONT></P><FONT
face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif size=-1></FONT>
<P><FONT face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif size=-1><B>Q. I
don't walk my dog near a stream. How does my dog's poop get there?
</B></FONT></P><FONT face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif
size=-1></FONT>
<P><FONT face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif size=-1><B>A.</B>
Streams in Baltimore City are fed by storm drains. The system of storm
drains and underground pipes is, essentially, the replacement for the
smaller streams that existed in your neighborhood before your neighborhood
was built. When it rains, poop and other pollutants (litter, oil, etc.) are
carried into the storm drains, through pipes, into nearby streams.
</FONT></P><FONT face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif
size=-1></FONT>
<P><FONT face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif size=-1><B>Q. Why
doesn't the sewage treatment plant clean this water before it reaches the
river? </B></FONT></P><FONT face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif
size=-1></FONT>
<P><FONT face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif size=-1><B>A.</B>
The Baltimore City sewage treatment plant only processes waste water from
indoor plumbing. The sewage treatment plant does not have the ability, or
the capacity, to treat rain water, which is what the storm sewer system is
designed to carry.</FONT></P><FONT
face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif size=-1></FONT>
<P><FONT face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif size=-1><B>Q. Is it
illegal not to pick up poop in my own yard? </B></FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif size=-1><B>A.</B>
There is no law that requires you to pick up the poop your pet leaves on
your own property. However, during a rain storm, this poop can get washed
out of your yard, down a storm sewer and find its way into your local
stream. Additionally, the large quantity of nutrients in dog poop can "burn
out" grass plants by overfeeding them, creating a spotty "minefield" look in
yards where poop isn't scooped. Lastly, poop can also attract rats. Please
clean up your yard regularly!</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif size=-1><B>Q. What
is the best way to get rid of my dog's poop?</B></FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif size=-1><B>A.</B>
Pick it up with a plastic bag, tie a knot in the bag and put it in a trash
can. Do not throw the bag down a storm sewer. Throwing a bag of poop down a
storm sewer will cause the poop to get into your nearby stream (when the bag
eventually breaks) and the bag itself will end up as litter. You can use the
plastic bag your newspaper or groceries come in, or you can purchase special
poop bags at most pet stores. You can also flush your dog's poop, <I>without
a bag</I>, down the toilet. This will send the poop to the sewage treatment
plant where it will be adequately treated before returning to the
environment.</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face=Verdana,Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif size=-1><EM>Thanks
for taking the time to learn more about the environmental impact of
unscooped poop.</EM> </FONT></P></BLOCKQUOTE></DIV>
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