Nasty neighbor demanded ‘proof’ dog poop was his when asked to clean — so this parent used their baby’s dirty diapers to give it to him
Dealing with inconsiderate neighbors is never easy, especially when it involves something as unpleasant as unattended dog poop on your front lawn. Many people have experienced this frustration, but only a few have found clever ways to respond. In a Reddit thread where users were asked how they deal with such situations, one person shared a memorable story that stood out for its creativity and effectiveness.
This Reddit user explained that their neighbor’s dog had a habit of defecating in their front yard. They knew exactly which dog it was; not only had they seen it themselves, but other neighbors confirmed it too. Still, the dog's owner always denied responsibility. “Unless you can prove it, it wasn’t my dog,” he would say, refusing to take any blame or action.
One day, the user saw an opportunity to turn the situation around. Their young daughter was still in diapers at the time, and they had a small trash bag with a couple of used, very messy diapers in it. They left the bag on the porch briefly, planning to take it to the bin later. Within ten minutes, they returned to find the bag torn open and the dirty diapers scattered. A neighbor across the street witnessed what happened and said, “You know whose dog it was.” That was all the confirmation they needed.
Wearing disposable gloves, the user gathered the messy diapers along with some of the dog poop from their lawn. They then walked over and left it all neatly on the dog owner's porch. About thirty minutes later, the angry neighbor showed up, yelling at their door. The user calmly replied, “Unless you can prove those are my daughter’s diapers, they aren’t hers. And… I don’t own a dog, so…” After that, the problem stopped. A simple act of returning the mess to its rightful place solved what had been an ongoing issue.
The debate over how to handle irresponsible pet owners has been going on for a while, and now even authorities are starting to take stricter action. In the Italian city of Bolzano, officials have introduced a system that uses dog DNA to track down owners who don’t pick up after their pets. Around 40,000 dogs were expected to be added to a DNA database by March 2024. When dog poop is found in public areas, it will be tested and matched to a registered dog. If found guilty, owners could be fined between $54 and $545, plus pay for the DNA test.
The viral question of how to deal with ignorant pet parents attracted more responses from other Reddit users as well. u/cari-strat shared in the comment section, "My nan collected it all in a bucket, then when it was full, went round, knocked on their door, and when they answered, said, 'I think you forgot something!' and upended the bucket on their step. No problems after that." u/ravynwave suggested, "Install the cam, print out nice large pictures of the person not picking up the poo, and plaster it everywhere."