From Ronald Quay

I live in Bukit Damansara and I do regular brisk walks in our lovely neighbourhood at least two to three times a week. Many other residents also come out to enjoy the fresh air and do their walks as well.

There are also quite a few residents who take their dogs for walks or exercises which is all well and good until one sees them nonchalantly allowing their dear dogs to do their “business”, be it on the grass patch, the walking paths or, sometimes, on the lawns outside the fence of private homes.

Never a pleasant sight to see the poo when walking but it can be a stinking experience if one were to, accidentally, step on a pile of doggie poo which I had the unfortunate experience of doing recently.

However, on a more pleasant note, I also see some residents when walking their dogs carry with them either a small plastic bag or a paper wrap and take on the responsibility of picking up the poo after the “business” is done by their canine friends.

Just the other day I took the initiative to compliment a resident for picking up the “mess” and scooped it into a plastic wrapper he brought with him.

This is the kind of responsibility we would expect from pet owners.

I have nothing against dogs for I, too, had quite a few canine friends in the past and like the second category of dog owners, I always carried a plastic bag or a paper wrap to pick up the poo after the “business” is done by the dogs.

I guess another reason aside from taking the dogs for their exercises, dog owners want to let the dogs do their “business” outside instead of doing it in the compounds of their own homes.

It can be messy if this were to happen in one’s home. But then is it okay to let the dogs do their “business” in the public domain and on the lawns just outside other people’s houses? I think, that is not fair at all.

It was no surprise then when I saw an irate resident put up a notice in front of their house which read “PLEASE BE CONSIDERATE AND NOT ALLOW YOUR DOG TO DO THEIR BUSINESS HERE, THANK YOU!”

I think it is time that the dog owners in affluent Bukit Damansara adopt the good practice like what other responsible dog owners are doing – always carry a small plastic bag or a paper wrap and do the decent thing by scooping up their dog’s poo.

This message should also be passed on to their domestic helpers or guards who are tasked to take the dogs for their daily exercises.

I do think the many citizens who walk in the neighbourhood have no issues with seeing dogs going for walks with their owners but it is definitely not a pleasant sight to see a lump of dog poo on the grass perch and sometimes on the pavements.

Perhaps, the time is nigh for the local authority, DBKL, to consider advising dog owners to carry with them plastic wrappers when they walk their dogs.

For a start, can I suggest to DBKL to put up notices to inform dog owners to carry plastic wrappers with them and also to set up poles and place plastic wrappers on the poles for dog owners to pick up when they walk their dogs.

In fact, this is what some local councils are doing in other parts of the world.

Finally, Bukit Damansara is such a pleasant suburb for so many of us to enjoy our morning and evening walks and it is a shame if it continues to be a public toilet for our canine friends.

So, could we kindly ask pet owners to be mindful of this and extend some consideration to their neighbours?

Ronald Quay is an FMT reader.

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of FMT.