How to Use this Kit

Leaving dog poo on streets, parks and beaches is smelly, unsightly and very unpleasant to step in! It is a major worry for local communities and councils. Dog poo is a serious litter issue with wide ranging impacts on amenity, health and the environment.

Did you know?

Around 900,000 dogs in Victoria produce 90 tonnes of dog poo each day!
Droppings contain harmful bacteria and nutrients, and some end up washing into natural waterways and Port Phillip Bay through the stormwater system. This may contribute to excessive E. coli pollution readings on beaches following heavy rainfalls.
Toxocara Canis is the roundworm that can be found in the faeces of infected puppies or adult dogs, and can be passed onto humans. Children, people with compromised immune systems and field sports players are most at risk of infection.

What works? Integrated programs

This kit contains current best practice on dog poo litter management for councils and other community groups. It is a quick and easy tool that explains how to implement a dog poo litter reduction and prevention program in your local area.

The most effective litter prevention programs include a mix of approaches including:

1. Research - understanding the problem

Having a good understanding of the dog poo litter problem is central to creating a successful program. This kit provides information on a range of factors including community concerns about dog poo, environmental and health impacts, dog owner attitudes and behaviours, and the defecating habits of dogs themselves.

2. Education - explaining the problem

Effective education remains our most powerful tool for achieving long-term change within the community. It provides an opportunity for changed motivations and changed internal control (i.e. I want to, I know how to and I know what the benefits will be).

This kit outlines the principles behind effective education and how they can be applied to dog poo prevention.

3. Enforcement & Regulation - reinforcing the message

Local litter prevention programs must integrate enforcement with education if they are to be successful because compliance is closely related to the likelihood 'i will be caught'. People believe litterers should be prosecuted as part of the message that littering is harmful to the environment.

This kit highlights the importance of informing people about the penalties as well as creating a reasonable probability they will be fined for non-compliance and includes ideas on how to successfully integrate enforcement into your program.

4. Infrastructure - the tools to change

Making it easy for people to both pick-up and dispose of dog poo by establishing physical or social infrastructure is key to long-term behaviour change.

This kit provides details of appropriate products including dog poo bags, bag dispensers, signage, dog toilets, dog poo composters and appropriate bins as well as suggestions for street cleaning and bin-emptying schedules to help keep public areas clean.

5. Incentives - persuading people to change

Financial and other incentives are a powerful way to encourage people to dispose of their dog's poo appropriately and responsibly.

The kit contains ideas on appropriate incentives for dog owners and dog groups with a number of case studies highlighting their role and effectiveness.

6. Public Open Space Planning - incorporating dogs & their owners

Dog owners are a significant group of park users whose needs cannot be forgotten in planning open space. The challenge is to meet the needs of dogs and their owners while minimising nuisance factors and avoiding conflict with other park users.

This kit outlines the importance of planning and includes references to specialist research.

7. Working together - building community support

Working together, within all the relevant areas of council, and with individuals and groups in the community, is a critical part of litter prevention. Participation in the development, planning and implementation of programs builds ownership and extends it way beyond the boundaries of one unit in council. Over time this ever-expanding circle of involvement could include everyone!

This kit includes tips for targeting the critical areas of first council and then the community and case studies of how other councils have achieved wide support.

8. Good communication - every step of the way

A strong communications plan publicising each phase of your program, particularly the education and enforcement element, is important for building community support and securing the success of the program.

The kit gives ideas on the most effective ways to spread the message, as well as providing sample media releases, advertisements and existing campaigns. It also includes an implementation checklist to help you develop your program.

9. Case Studies - what works, what doesn't

Reading case studies is an excellent way of seeing what has been done before, what worked that might be right for your local conditions and also importantly, what didn't work and you can avoid!

This kit includes over ten case studies that a range of Victorian and interstate councils have kindly taken the time to complete and share their learnings with others. There's also a quick reference summary to save you time.

10. Resources

In the Resources section you will find complete References used in this kit, links to useful websites and other resources you might find helpful.

Publishing Details

This kit, the third in a series of litter prevention kits produced by Victoria's Litter Champion Project, has been developed by the Victorian Litter Action Alliance (VLAA) in partnership with the Bureau of Animal Welfare's Community Education Program, Victorian Department of Primary Industries (for full details see Publisher).