The do's and don't of dog throwing away poop
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Illustration: Brendan Lynch/Axios
If you throw your bagged dog poop into a neighbor's trash cart, there's a good chance you've made them mad — perhaps enough to get a tongue lashing or worse: a reciprocal bag on your doorsteps.
Why it matters: We take etiquette seriously here at Axios Twin Cities, digging deep into the biggest wedge issues in Minnesota, like shoes at house parties, free sampling of ice cream, how early is too early to mow your lawn and merging onto I-94.
Friction point: The question we posed last week about dog waste really got people fired up. We received nearly 100 reader responses to this one.
- It's easy to see why it's such an issue. A 2022 city study found that Minneapolis' population of 112,000 dogs generates 15,340 tons of waste annually. Extrapolate those figures to the metro area, which has 8.7 times more people (and likely dogs), and we're talking about 133,500 tons of poo per year. This stuff has to go somewhere.
The big picture: A majority of you said dumping it in a neighbor's bin is disrespectful and makes for a stinky cart. But a sizable number also said they're OK if someone's bagged dog poop ends up in their bin, especially if it's out on the curb on trash day, before the garbage truck arrives.
Threat level: A City of Minneapolis spokesperson tells Axios that putting any kind of trash in someone else's cart is considered illegal dumping. And pet waste in your own bin is required to be double-bagged to protect garbage workers.
Here's what readers say about the issue:
If Bob A. from Mahtomedi can't find a public can, "I use anyone's trash can that is close to the road that I am walking on. My trash container is welcome to everyone ... better there than on the ground!"
Max L. used to live in Chicago, and he said it was the norm to throw your bag into the first can you saw (our Axios Chicago colleague Carrie Shepherd confirmed this). But when Max and his wife did it here in Minneapolis, an irate neighbor came out of their house screaming.
It was even worse for Bronson L. of St. Paul, whose husband once threw a tightly tied bag of dog poop into a stranger's can. A man who saw him do it followed Bronson home, and a few weeks later, threw a bag of poop onto his front steps.
Ellen P. does what many Minnesotans do: bottles up her frustration, even when seven days' worth of poop bags pile up in her St. Paul can. "I am just passive aggressive and complained about it and now I am sharing the story with Axios."
Oren S. grew up in St. Louis Park but lives in Toronto, where he says public garbage cans are everywhere, providing convenient places to deposit the bags. "Minneapolis needs to invest in more public trash bins!"
The bottom line: One solution several readers suggested: If you don't want the stinky bags in your bin, put a sign saying "no poop" on the top.