As campers who love to bring their dogs along, we always try to practice the philosophy of “leaving no trace” when it comes to our canine friends, as well as ourselves. We recently received a question from one of our readers: “what do to do with my dog’s poop when I go camping?”. That’s a really good question, and if you’re planning on going camping with your furry friends we’d like to offer some suggestions about how to deal with pet waste on a camping trip.
Why Can’t You Just Leave Your Pet’s Poop In The Woods?
You may be wondering – if deer, bear, wolves and other creatures can poop in the woods – why would my pet’s poop be any worse for the environment than theirs? Because domestic dogs eat a very different diet than wild animals do, their waste has a “unique composition” that’s not always good for the environment. Pet waste typically contains more nitrogen and phosphorous than wild animal scat. When excess nitrogen and phosphorous are deposited near streams, it can lead to harmful algal blooms, including those of blue-green algae, which ironically can be toxic to dogs.
According to the Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics, there are around 83 million pet dogs out there that produce 10.6 million tons of poop each year. Unfortunately, some of that waste is entering the groundwater and watersheds thanks to campers and hikers who bring their dogs along without picking up after them.
We’ve all seen signs at swimming areas with warnings of “Closed Due to High Bacteria Count”, etc. One study showed that over the course of just a few days, 100 dogs could produce enough bacteria laden waste, that, if it was left on the ground, could wash into the ocean and cause the closure of a a bay, and all watershed areas within a 20-mile radius, to fishing and swimming!
Another unfortunate consequence of leaving domestic dog waste in the woods is the possibility that it may carry a new disease that wildlife such as coyotes and wolves may not have resistance to. According to the National Institute of Health, dogs may shed Canine distemper virus, Toxoplasma sp. and Neospora caninum. A dog that appears otherwise healthy and is exhibiting no symptoms of disease can still spread these diseases to wildlife.
Nobody wants to carry around stinky dog poop, but it’s our “doody” to pack it out of the woods. Here’s how we deal with it when camping.
Airtight Storage Containers and Compostable Bags
If you are planning an extended back-country camping trip in a place where you can’t bury dog poop, you should plan to store your pet’s waste. We use a Vittles Vault outback (an airtight pet food storage container) for our dog’s waste, along with compostable poop bags. The inside of the Vittles Vault does smell like hell when we empty it, but it doesn’t leak very much smell when full and kept in the back of our vehicle. For trail hiking, a ziplock bag or a sealed food storage container – kept in your backpack – can be used to store full poo bags.
(Hint: Place a small, open box of baking soda inside it each time you use it and sprinkle some inside the container as well.) Also, You’ll want to keep any container that you store dog waste in out of the sun, and in as cool a place as possible. Once your little treasure vault is full and you’re back home, please dispose of the contents properly.
Not all dog poop bags are really “compostable”, so read the fine print before purchasing. Also, just be aware that some compostable pet bags are not as strong as plastic ones. You may need to double bag.
If You Can’t Pack Out Pet Waste
If for some reason you’re camping in a remote area and can’t pack out your pet’s waste, Leave No Trace’s Donielle Stevens and Aaron Hussmann, authors of Wildlife Poop Vs. Dog Poop Explained suggest that you deposit pet waste in a 6-8″ deep hole at least 200 feet (70 big steps) away from any water sources.
What Not To Do
It’s been estimated that only 60% of dog owners pick up their dog’s poo. Even when they do, some dog owners “forget” to pick up the full bags they left behind along the trail. Not only are the contents a bio-hazard, but the bags themselves break down into micro-plastics that continue to pollute the environment. Below is a photo that we took recently in the Lincoln National forest, at a dispersed camping spot just outside of Cloudcroft. There were full pet waste bags all around the camping area that we picked up and disposed of. If you do bag your pet waste instead of burying it – (never bury a plastic bag) – please pack it out with you.
If you have a better solution for dealing with your pet’s waste while camping, please feel free to send us an email at [email protected] and we can add your tips to this article.
Sources: https://smea.uw.edu/currents/scoop-the-poop-its-your-environmental-doody-pun-intended/
https://lnt.org/wildlife-poop-versus-dog-poop-explained/
