Dear PoPville – Advice on Dealing with a Dog Walker Who Doesn’t Leash nor Clean Up after his Dog

Photo by PoPville flickr user Mr. T in DC

Dear PoPville,

There is a man in our neighborhood who walks his pit bull daily up and down our street with no leash. The dog hasn’t attacked a person or another animal as of yet, so that’s not the immediate issue (we’ll save that for another day). The problem is that the owner allows his dog to crap anywhere and doesn’t even attempt to clean it up. Now let me clarify; when I say anywhere, I mean anywhere, which includes people’s yards, the middle of the sidewalk, and even people’s front stoop steps! This is no small dog and thus no small load of crap. It’s absolutely disgusting! This issue was recently brought up at an HOA meeting and while everyone has seen the perpetrator at one point or another, no one has seen him recently (though the crap out front lets us all know he’s around) and no one knows where he resides.

I’ve contacted 311 about this issue and was told to contact MPD (via 911) the next time he is seen so that they can issue him a ticket for walking the dog without a leash and failing to clean up after the dog. The problem is that 1) I think calling 911 over this issue is a bit extreme and 2) it’s highly unlikely that they’ll make it there in time to catch the guy. Should I call 911 and report these incidents anyway just so there’s a record of such transgressions or are there other alternatives that I could explore? Yes, I could stake out the front of my house and then have a conversation with the guy but since he seems so elusive at the moment, I need other alternatives while I continue to clean up dog crap from the yard and walkways. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.