Buy a pet rock. No problems with them! I can do you a special deal!

Dianne, it really bothers me to hear of anyone who is mean to animals.  We get people who dump animals out here too and that is so cruel.  I see glimps of cats running wild in the woods behind us and I know that the wild life out there probably eat those poor cats for lunch.  I just don't understand how people can profess to love their animals but let them run and not be responsible for them. 

 I can't tell you how unpleasant it is to pick up poop from my backyard; but as long as it is my choice to own three big furry Chows, it is something I have to do.  My husband sure isn't bothered by it, but I am.  I have been to people houses where they entertained (cookout) in the backyard and didn't give one thought to cleaning up their yard.  Ugh.  Not a good place to visit and I will never accept another invitation there.

We've always had cats--indoor only. So I get pretty upset when people walk their dogs &  let them poop in our yard.  I'm a 'barefoot' person, lol & it's no fun to step in it! Luckily, my husband keeps our grass cut short enough that we can see any poop.  

Now, here...it's illegal to let dogs out without being on a leash; and there is also a 'pooper scooper' law as well: it's illegal to NOT pick up your dog's poop! I love that law, lol.   But quite often...dog owners here ignore it.  One had the nerve to tell me if I didnt want his dog pooping in my yard, I should put up a fence! (which is not allowed in our particular case)  Another one got snooty & said his dog didn't do it, although my husband was watching at the time.

Now, even though I don't want a dog as a pet, I do like dogs. I just don't like the poop in MY yard. If I had a dog...I'd  be picking up the poop.  I notice they dont want their dogs pooping in THEIR yard, lol.  

As for 'wild cats'...that's also illegal here; and I get very upset at people who just dump their cats & expect 'someone' to take care of them. I've had cat-haters tell me they'll go out of their way to run over a cat!  So when I find stray cats, I'll go to the trouble of making  a special trip to the Humane Society or Animal Control--both of which will try to find homes for them.

   Yes I know most Dogs wont go potty in their own yard bur go somewhere else.  It was just the thought that she was not even supposed to have them out without a leash but she brought those little kittens up and almost threw them in my door. I figure what is good for the goose should be good for the gander, TEE HEE   Clydene

That is always a problem when animals run loose. Years ago, we didn't have a fenced back yard and our dogs were allowed to go where they pleased. They usually stayed close to home, but not always.  That all came to a screeching halt when a new neighbor moved in with an Akita who he kept on a strong line.  Somehow, the dog broke that line and attacked three dogs that day.  One was taken to the vet and stitched up.  One of the dogs was our little female Chow but because she was so hairy the teeth on the Akita couldn't penetrate even though she had her by the throat.  Dogs will usually not poop where they play so they go somewhere else.  That is just nature.  Most animals do that; but if you are the recipient of that poop, it is not fun.  We now have a fenced back yard and our dogs never run but in the nice weather I still have to watch where I walk if I am out front.  Yes, it is so maddening.  Most everyone around here now has fenced back yards and because it is a rural area I can hear and sometimes see coyotes so dogs really don't need to be running.  Cats are another story.  I don't think they can be kept in all the time.  When cats visit our yard and get too close it could be fatal for them (if they get in the back yard).  Our dogs think of them as squirrels.  Getting the smell of cat urine off our deck  is another story.

Oh Clydene, you've hit on a topic that we are always having a problem with, since Inky died. The people next door have several cats, and they poop all over our yard. Inky used to stop strange cats from coming in at all. I've never said anything because next door is a working woman with kids and I can't expect her to know where her cats are all the time. I put pepper on their favourite garden but that wears off after a while, and I can't pepper the entire yard.

People across the road have big dogs that do the same thing, but we have discovered that they only come in when our gate is open at night, offering a large space for them to investigate. While they could easily get over our wall, they never do. All we have to do is remember to shut the gate.

We have neither cat nor dog, and don't want to get one in our present circumstances.