‘The Big Scoop’ dog fouling awareness campaign

Dogs Trust, Ireland’s largest dog welfare charity, has today launched their annual dog fouling awareness campaign, ‘The Big Scoop’ to encourage more people to be kind to their community and pick up after their dog. This week, as part of this nationwide campaign, the charity’s Education and Community Team will be visiting selected schools across Ireland delivering ‘The Big Scoop’ workshops, where they will educate pupils on the importance of being a responsible dog owner,  and how dog fouling is not a dog problem but a human one all while using their three tier approach - the law, health, and the people it affects.
Free downloadable toolkits full of lesson plans, posters, fact sheets and activities have also been made available. Both the toolkit and workshops will educate children about this important job and encourage them to remind the adults they’re walking with (not strangers) of their responsibility to pick up after their dogs.
In addition, each school or group that downloads a pack and that takes part in a workshop will be invited to take part in ‘The Big Scoop’ national poster competition to highlight the importance of this issue.  There are many prizes to be won and the overall poster winner will help represent the promotion of next year’s campaign.
Dawn Kavanagh, Education Manager at Dogs Trust said: “Children are the future dog owners of Ireland so it’s so important to instil the key messages around responsible dog ownership, which includes picking up after our dogs, from a young age. Adults should be leading by example, as it is the responsibility of adults to pick up after their dog. Our workshops will encourage children to remind family and friends, not strangers, about their responsibility as dog owners. We carried out research which revealed that almost half of people surveyed* came across dog poo in local children’s parks which is a staggering figure and highlights how big of an issue this is for communities. We hope that our ‘The Big Scoop’ workshops, toolkit and the poster competition will make learning fun and inspire the next generation to become model dog owners of the future.”
Recent research carried out by Behaviour & Attitudes for Dogs Trust revealed that 69%f people surveyed claim they often witness dog walkers not cleaning up after their dog with 57%*ndicating that dog fouling is a big issue in their area. The Big Scoop campaign aims to tackle this issue and remind people to be more mindful of vulnerable members in their community who are more at risk of coming into contact with dog poo and putting their health at risk. 64%f those surveyed claimed to have walked in it in a park, 31%* ave rolled a buggy through it and 11% have rolled their wheelchair through it.
In addition to dog poo being unsightly, it also poses a risk to your health as it can contain bacteria such as E-coli and parasites such as round worm, the larvae of which can cause loss of vision. It has been estimated that a single gram of dog waste can contain 23 million faecal coliform bacteria, which are known to cause cramps, diarrhoea, intestinal illness, and serious kidney disorders in humans.
The charity is urging the public to always pick up after their dog using a Poo Bag or a scooping device before disposing of it in any bin and then to wash their hands when they get home.
Remember that cleaning up after your dog is the law and owners who don’t are guilty of an offence and can be fined if the poo is left behind.
To find out more about how you can support this campaign log onto www.dogstrust.ie/TheBigScoop

FREE SCHOOL TOOLKITS
‘The Big Scoop’ School Toolkits are freely available for schools and community groups to download at: www.learnwithdogstrust.ie/thebigscoop.