^^I really don't have a problem with people asking others to keep their dogs completely away from the lawn, not pee on it or on certain plants, etc. But I think that a bit of kindness goes a long way, at least as a first impression. I had a neighbor who was the same way except with loose dogs, and not without reason--this was a really rural area where a lot of people let their dogs roam. The first time he saw me out with my dogs, he called to me that if my dogs were ever on his property, he'd call animal control and they'd be picked up, really aggressive about it. I felt really uncomfortable and unwelcome.
Well I lived there for years and got to know him and he turned out to be a nice guy, and as I said I understand--I had 6 dogs at the time, and in an area with a lot of irresponsible dog owners, I'd be nervous too if someone with that many dogs moved in next door.
But I felt like we would have had a much friendlier relationship if he'd just been a bit less aggressive about it. I've had to deal with irresponsible dog-owning neighbors too and so I know how annoying it can be, but I've found that 4 times out of 5, a nice talk fixes the problem--then if it doesn't I'll escalate.
JMO, of course. I'll respect their wishes either way, I just like 'em better if they're nice about it.
If I see someone who doesn't, like the other day I was driving by the park and a lady had let her lab poop and she was walking away. Well, I stopped and she came over ( it helped my dog was in the back seat) and handed her a mutt mitt - saying "oh, I see you need one" and told her are much better they work than plastic grocery bags. She thanked me and did go back and pick it up.
Good for you! I'm the same way...I figure it's my business even if it's not my property, because people who don't clean up after their dogs make it bad for all of us!
I actually just moved in with my boyfriend in a town (rather than way out in the middle of nowhere where I used to live), and for the first couple of weeks I was really bad about remembering to bring bags with. I would have actually been grateful if you'd stopped like that for me, and maybe the following story will illustrate why...
So it wasn't usually a problem because I also try to make it so my dogs don't have to on walks, but once I was caught out on a walk without a bag when, shall we say, a deposit was made. :blush: No one was around and it was after dark so I finished my walk and went home...then drove back to pick it up, LOL. The homeowner saw me (it took me a moment to find the pile) and came out all, "What the heck are you doing?" obviously suspicious about someone hunting around in his yard with a flashlight at like 9 PM. I explained and he started cracking up and thanked me for doing it. He was like, "You could have just knocked on the door, I would have given you a bag." He even tossed it out for me so I didn't have to drive home with the bag.
Now I've gotten those little bag dispensers for all my leashes so it isn't a big deal, but that was pretty darn funny. The guy lives just like a block away from me too and is retired and does a lot of yard work, so we see him a lot and now we always stop to chat.
So there is like the one story in the history of civilization where dog poop actually improved relations between neighbors.