City Uses DNA To Sniff Out Dog Poop Offenders 252
An Israeli city is using DNA analysis of dog droppings to reward pet owners who clean up after their pets and punish those who don't. A six-month trial program launched this week, in the city of Petah Tikva, to tackle the dog mess problem in a high tech way. The program asks dog owners to take their pets to a veterinarian, who then swabs its mouth and collects DNA. The city will use the DNA database it is building to match droppings to a dog and identify its owner. Owners who scoop up their dogs' droppings and place them in specially marked bins will be eligible for rewards of pet food coupons and dog toys. Those who leave the poo on the street face fines. I wonder what sin you had to commit in a previous life to find yourself the official dog poop examiner of Petah Tikva, Israel.
No vet, no license for your dog (Score:5, Informative)
In Israel, you need to have a license for your dog from the city/municipality where you live; you get it when you take your dog to the vet for its annual rabies vaccination. All licensed dogs must be "chipped" also.
I suppose getting caught walking an unlicensed dog will also get you a hefty fine, and your dog will be confiscated. I wouldn't think that most municipalities in Israel have a lot of budget for paying people to check on dog licensing and enforcing the "clean after your dog" laws. Maybe this is one way to try to generate a new income stream for the municipality (people already pay for licensing their dogs)?
Re:You've GOT TO BE KIDDING ME, part 85984374 (Score:5, Informative)
Re:You've GOT TO BE KIDDING ME, part 85984374 (Score:4, Informative)
Actually we could use something like that in SoCal's parks. There isn't a single day when I don't see new dog turds on my usual running route. This is despite huge signs tha tell you to pick up after your dog, free plastic bag dispensers and large trash cans everywhere.
Many dog owners are assholes, that's the only way I can see it. Tax the hell out of them and pay somebody to clean up the dog shit.
dog cr@p problems in Israel (Score:5, Informative)
I live in Modi'in (in Israel), city of the future. Apparently in the future most people refuse to pick up the poop of their horse sized dogs. This isn't a problem only in my city, this is nation wide. It's a weird cultural thing.
In any case, we are electing a new mayor, and at a public debate we heard from all of the candidates. It was running neck and neck until one stood up and said he'd sick the gestapo on anyone who doesn't pick up after their pets. Judging by the reaction he got, dude is gonna win by a landslide!
This method would let any city clean up it's streets without hiring more cops, which sounds great to me.
Re:Let me be the first to say... (Score:3, Informative)
I'll tell you why I care. Because the neighbor's dog is a freaking mutant, and eats things that *aren't food* and don't get digested. I've had to clean up everything from condoms to scraps of cloth and likely carpet fibers to a piece of metal that I suspect was an underwire from a bra.
Re:Let me be the first to say... (Score:3, Informative)
Also, there are times when I can smell it even without standing in it. Or hows about when my mulching mower tries to mulch a big pile? It gets in the wheels and sometimes the clippings bag which I have to empty manually. Ewww!
I don't own a dog and any dog poop in my yard is someone else's mess that never should have been left there. I don't know how many times I've watched someone walking their dog stop and wait while Fido leaves a present behind. Strays are one thing but anyone with their pet that does that needs to wake up to a mailbox full of dog poop (sorry for all the poop - work filters FTL).