I can't. Take it. Anymore.

[amalie79]

The sh*t in the yard just never ever ends!

I know that with 3 big dogs, there's just gonna be a lot of crap. No two ways about it. I feed them good food-- I can't imagine what it would be like if they ate Ol' Roy! Does anyone have a good solution?

I have a scooper and I like it, so the mechanics of cleaning up are pretty good. But keeping up with it is a nightmare. Sometimes, River and Robin are out there when I'm not watching every second. And Simon poops while walking, so I can't just mentally flag where he went and keep an eye on where the others are going; he poops while walking and in 2 stages, so instead I have to follow him around or we end up with sh*t bombs all over the yard. Meanwhile, the other 2 have gone somewhere in the yard (our yard's pretty big with lots of "areas" and brush) and I have no idea where and even though I keep crappy shoes in the mudroom, I inevitably wear my good shoes out and have crap all over them, or Simon tracks it in since he has terrible motor control, and... ARGH! I'm losing my mind!

And then there's the plastic grocery sack that I use to "collect"-- talk about a waste. I saw a thing at Lowe's yesterday that's basically a doggy septic tank-- it's really just a lid for a hole in the ground and enzyme tablets to break everything down. Anyone ever used one?

How do you guys with multiples keep up?

[Pit♥bull]

Feed em lots of carrots, easy to spot just like a highway construction area.

[FAB dogs]

Doggie septic systems don't work too well in the winter under the snow and ice, but I've made a cheap one at home for the warmer months. I do have a small yard, though so it's fairly easy to keep up with.

I bought a small plastic trash can with a lid. Looks like Oscar the Grouch's can only a whole lot smaller. I poked holes in the bottom of it and in the lid. Then I dug a hole deep enough that the lid is level with the ground (so I can mow over it with damaging the lawnmower).

Every day (okay, more like every few days), I go out and rake all of the poop over to it. I pry off the lid and shove all the poop into the trash can. Every few weeks I buy a box of Rid Ex for septic systems. I pour it into the trash can and add some water. The poop eventually breaks down and leaks out of the holes in the bottom of the barrel.

Maybe not the best way to handle things, but it does work for me and my crew.

[BullyLady]

Feed raw, Shelby's just dries up and turns to dust. You can mow right over it and it sort of disintegrates. My FAVORITE raw fringe benefit!

[iluvk9]

Come pick up after 3 dogs (one who only eats Mighty Dog canned) and a pony and you will appreciate 3 dogs.

[BigDogBuford]

Come pick up after seven dogs, all in rainy WA weather. Seriously gross. I feel your pain.

[amalie79]

Come pick up after seven dogs, all in rainy WA weather. Seriously gross. I feel your pain.

The melting snow has made it DISGUSTING.

Thanks for the suggestions (and commiserations).

I have thought about feeding raw, and I might at some point. It actually wouldn't be so bad if I didn't have to follow Simon around, and I guess that's not going to change, so... I think I'm stuck.

[plebayo]

Eh I feed both of my dogs a high quality kibble, I tried raw but Seth gets horrible diarrhea no matter what protein we try and no matter how much bone he gets.

Seth and LiLo both poop a lot, they poop like Great Danes... I just try to pick up the yard either everyday, or every couple of days.

[amalie79]

Eh I feed both of my dogs a high quality kibble, I tried raw but Seth gets horrible diarrhea no matter what protein we try and no matter how much bone he gets.

Seth and LiLo both poop a lot, they poop like Great Danes... I just try to pick up the yard either everyday, or every couple of days.

If Robin's allergies turn out to be food-related, we might have to try raw or home-cooked.

I pick up every couple of days, But the problem really is Simon's little presents throughout the yard, and then trying to catch up with the others. He will literally spread little turds over a path of 20-30 feet. And we never got all the leaves raked up this fall, so it's hard to find sometimes. They eat a lot of pumpkin, which means it's orange, but only on the inside. The bottom of my shoes ends up a lovely shade of florescent orange, though.

[BullyLady]

If Robin's allergies turn out to be food-related, we might have to try raw or home-cooked.

Raw has helped Shelby's allergies immensely. We fed it to her as a puppy only because our other dog was eating it (for health reasons as well) and thenried her on kibble for a summer, just because it was more convenient, her skin effing EXPLODED. It was..... unreal. Put her back on raw and her skin went back to it's normal low level allergy crap again.

[TheRedQueen]

Um...I don't want to hear ANY complaining about poop pick-up. Only three dogs? ha...walk in the park...

I think you need to adopt a poop-eating labrador, they're a dime a dozen.

[amalie79]

Um...I don't want to hear ANY complaining about poop pick-up. Only three dogs? ha...walk in the park...

I think you need to adopt a poop-eating labrador, they're a dime a dozen.

Touché.

[LMM]

Feed raw, Shelby's just dries up and turns to dust. You can mow right over it and it sort of disintegrates. My FAVORITE raw fringe benefit!

Ditto.

[copperlegend]

My back deck is DISGUSTING right now. Didn't switch to raw until a month ago. Gonna have to power-wash in the spring for sure.

[amalie79]

My back deck is DISGUSTING right now. Didn't switch to raw until a month ago. Gonna have to power-wash in the spring for sure.

Especially when it snows, the dogs seem to forge that there's a patio back there and just go. Then the snow melts. Yuck. Simon also just makes it out the door and then pees on the doormat and on his front right leg and tries to walk back through it into the house. Poor guy. At least he tries to make it out of the house.

I know having multiple dogs means lots of pick-up. I guess I'm more on a rant/pity-party about having an old dog that physically can't go in one spot. He shuffles around and there's just no way for me to keep up with where it all falls and I'm constantly stepping in it, even when I'm following behind him practically catching it as it comes out.

I'll probably revisit raw, but honestly not while Simon's still around, I don't think. Realistically, he doesn't have that long, and I don't want to upset his lifestyle any more than I have to. I don't know. On the other hand, he might love it . He loves a little added turkey or eggs to his dinner. At the very lease, he is regular. And when he can't wait and goes in the house it's very, erm... firm and easy to clean up after. So yeah. There's that.

[SisMorphine]

I pick up every day. But I only have two and a half dogs using the yard (I count my mother's dog as a half of a dog since he's with me most of the time) and it's a relatively small yard. This year I think I'll be making my own septic tank for the muttlies just to keep things tidy.

And I hate the spring thaw because no matter how much I pick up in the winter I innevitably miss some that gets covered with snow before I get out there, and when it thaws I have a dogyard full of mud and poop. Gross!

[plebayo]

I'll probably revisit raw, but honestly not while Simon's still around, I don't think. Realistically, he doesn't have that long, and I don't want to upset his lifestyle any more than I have to. I don't know. On the other hand, he might love it . He loves a little added turkey or eggs to his dinner. At the very lease, he is regular. And when he can't wait and goes in the house it's very, erm... firm and easy to clean up after. So yeah. There's that.

Sofie liked eating raw food but didn't have the teeth for it. I bought her premade stuff for a while... she even at the turkey liver that Seth wouldn't touch I wish Seth could handle eating raw because they at least get some enrichment out of their food. Both Seth and LiLo eat their kibble in a matter of minutes, Seth would be done in 30seconds if I didn't water it down. The only thing I have to say though is that LiLo still had big poops when getting raw food... I didn't really see the pick up being that much better. I will say however the nice thing about raw is that the poop doesn't have a horrible odor like it does with kibble!

[amalie79]

I'll probably revisit raw, but honestly not while Simon's still around, I don't think. Realistically, he doesn't have that long, and I don't want to upset his lifestyle any more than I have to. I don't know. On the other hand, he might love it . He loves a little added turkey or eggs to his dinner. At the very lease, he is regular. And when he can't wait and goes in the house it's very, erm... firm and easy to clean up after. So yeah. There's that.

Sofie liked eating raw food but didn't have the teeth for it. I bought her premade stuff for a while... she even at the turkey liver that Seth wouldn't touch I wish Seth could handle eating raw because they at least get some enrichment out of their food. Both Seth and LiLo eat their kibble in a matter of minutes, Seth would be done in 30seconds if I didn't water it down. The only thing I have to say though is that LiLo still had big poops when getting raw food... I didn't really see the pick up being that much better. I will say however the nice thing about raw is that the poop doesn't have a horrible odor like it does with kibble!

Oh, crap. I forgot about needing serious teeth for it. We'd have to really grind it or buy premade, and I'm not sure I have the budget for premade. Simon's missing many incisors and everything else is pretty worn down.

Robin scarfs down her food and then goes nosing around the other two waiting for them to wander away from their bowls, so I have to watch them all at feeding time to keep her from getting hurt, especially because Simon DOES wander off frequently (he free-fed for about 13 years-- these last couple of years have been quite an adjustment). I've been thinking about buying a Brake-Fast bowl for Robin or putting a huge ball bearing in her dish. I don't water hers down because Nature's Variety uses citric acid, and soaking kibble with citric acid supposedly increases the chances of bloat. I've read a few more things saying those studies were pretty poorly conducted, but I try to stay on the safe side.

At any rate, she is completely ridiculous.

-- I know I could separate them at feeding time, and they are in different (but adjoining) rooms, but I have to watch to make sure Simon eats anyway, so it's easier to just have them all in the same area. And we worked up to it very gradually-- Robin ate in her crate for a while, and slowly was moved to be closer to the kitchen. If any of my guys showed even the slightest hint of food aggression we'd change it, but they share licking our plates and whatnot all the time. Just didn't want anyone to think it's not all monitored...

[furever_pit]

I have started using the plastic bins that we buy our cat litter in. I keep a black trash bag in there and wait until the bin is full so I can dispose of it. It sounds gross, but I keep the lid on the bin and the bin and the pooper scooper are kept in the corner of the yard furthest from the house. It works for me.

I actually end up picking up after five dogs, my three plus the two farm dogs. It hasn't been terrible but I also haven't had snow to deal with. It also helps that Gigz poops in one area of the yard. I'm not sure why, it's just his personal preference.

[amalie79]

I have started using the plastic bins that we buy our cat litter in. I keep a black trash bag in there and wait until the bin is full so I can dispose of it. It sounds gross, but I keep the lid on the bin and the bin and the pooper scooper are kept in the corner of the yard furthest from the house. It works for me.

I actually end up picking up after five dogs, my three plus the two farm dogs. It hasn't been terrible but I also haven't had snow to deal with. It also helps that Gigz poops in one area of the yard. I'm not sure why, it's just his personal preference.

Ooooh. I like it! Beats the hell out of Wal-Mart sacks! We already use an old litter bin as a slop bucket for the compost. That would work really well. I might even have an old one hanging around...I've started using the refillable litter bins at PetCo, even though the litter sucks, but I think I have an old one from a different brand... Yes. I like it indeed.