Nothing spoils a nice walk in the wilderness like finding someone else's used dog poop bag littered on the trail. It's a common pet peeve — pun intended.
One dog-loving Redditor went to the r/Nashville subreddit with photo evidence of such an encounter, hoping to remind their fellow dog walkers to do the right thing.
"Your dog's steaming pile belongs in the trash not in a bag left on the trail," their post read. "Sick of seeing other dog owners do this."
Not only had the poop been left on the trail the original poster was enjoying, it had also been bagged and knotted. What could have at least naturally decomposed was now trapped inside a polluting plastic bag — although leaving dog poop behind unbagged can also lead to the spread of bacteria and parasites, especially if it is washed away into a water source.
With harmful microplastics being found in nearly every ecosystem, the sight of unnecessary plastic in public is becoming even more of a troubling eyesore. Plus, fighting pollution starts with respecting nature — a respect that also extends to how people manage their pets in the outdoors.
Many other Redditors chimed in. Some thought that the culprit may have just been stashing the bag temporarily to pick it up on their way back, a common strategy.
Even so, the odds of forgetting it are high. Nature lovers should leave no trace as much as possible, as spoiling someone else's outing who assumes a bag is just litter is still a negative impact. Plus, the more people who have positive experiences in the outdoors, the more people are motivated to protect it.
Working with local officials to install bags and disposals around public parks is a good option to avoid this problem, as one commenter suggested.
Overall, the Nashville community empathized with the original poster's frustration.
"I really have never understood why people do this," one commenter wrote.
"If you're the type of person who would do this, at least buy bio-degradable poop bags," another pleaded.
"I'd rather someone just leave poop out than litter with plastic," a third wrote.
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