Dear Barb:
I have a question, my husband and I have two dogs and we walk them regularly and always pick up after them. Recently a new person has moved into the neighborhood and she has a large dog that she walks frequently. The problem is I have never seen her pick up after her dog. One day the dog was pooping and I was across the street walking my dog and I kind of slowed down to watch if she was going to pick up after her dog. She kept standing in front of her dog waiting for me to leave, but I kept looking back until I saw her walk away without picking up her dog’s poop. I don’t want to have problems with my neighbors, but I don’t think it is right that she let her dog poop all over everyone’s lawn. What is the best way to handle a situation like this? Mary.
Hi Mary:
Thanks for your question. I guess not everybody got the memo to clean up after their dogs! It is very inconsiderate and annoying that people still do this after all the signs that are posted about picking up after your dog. It’s hard to know what to do, because you don’t want to have problems with your neighbors, but you know this is not right. My suggestion would be that the next time you see her; perhaps you can approach her in a friendly manner and ask her if she needs a poop bag. Maybe you can carry on by saying, how annoying it is when you forget your bag and have to go back and pick up the poop. She may take the hint, or she may tell you where to go. I assume if she continues this bad habit she will make a lot of enemies in the neighborhood and will eventually be forced to pick up after her dog or walk it somewhere else, where she will most likely run into the same situation. Hope this was helpful.
Dear Barb:
Hi, my husband and I love camping and go all the time. We have some friends who bought tents and camping gear and started camping this year. We helped them a lot with camping information and where are the best campgrounds. They always ask us where we are camping and our site number and they book a site near us, which is great. The problem is they don’t spend any time with us. We assume they are asking us where we are going because they want to camp with us, but they don’t seem to. My question is why would they ask us and book a site near us and then not spend any time with us? Thanks, Kara.
Hey Kara:
Interesting scenario! Some people are just like this. They go on vacation with someone and want to go off by themselves. Maybe they just want to do different things than you and your husband do but yet like to know that you guys are close by. If you want to have dinner with them or go for a hike, you could just ask them. If they say no, just accept that and do what you would normally do when you camp without them. It’s simple solution. Thanks for writing.
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Email your questions to voice@voicemagazine.org. Some submissions may be edited for length or to protect confidentiality; your real name and location will never be printed. This column is for entertainment only. The author is not a professional counsellor and this column is not intended to take the place of professional advice.
