Hello everyone
My partner and I have three dogs, and of course, we always clean up after them. On our daily walks, we pass a public trash can that’s located near a local playground. Since it’s a general-use bin, we sometimes toss our sealed dog poop bags in there, like we would in any public trash can.
Recently, some neighbors saw this and got extremely upset. They claim the smell is awful for the kids playing nearby, and that it’s “disrespectful” to use that specific bin. Today, one of them actually screamed at my boyfriend, took photos of him without his consent, and said they’ve reported us to the housing company (we don’t even live in that building, so… okay?).
Their reaction honestly shocked us. We’re not throwing bags on the ground, not stuffing an overflowing bin, and the bags are always properly tied. Still, we’re left wondering:
Are we being inconsiderate? Or is this just an overreaction?
Are we the assholes… or is this one of those “the smarter person should just let it go” moments?
Comments
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Hello everyone
My partner and I have three dogs, and of course, we always clean up after them. On our daily walks, we pass a public trash can that’s located near a local playground. Since it’s a general-use bin, we sometimes toss our sealed dog poop bags in there, like we would in any public trash can.
Recently, some neighbors saw this and got extremely upset. They claim the smell is awful for the kids playing nearby, and that it’s “disrespectful” to use that specific bin. Today, one of them actually screamed at my boyfriend, took photos of him without his consent, and said they’ve reported us to the housing company (we don’t even live in that building, so… okay?).
Their reaction honestly shocked us. We’re not throwing bags on the ground, not stuffing an overflowing bin, and the bags are always properly tied. Still, we’re left wondering:
Are we being inconsiderate? Or is this just an overreaction?
Are we the assholes… or is this one of those “the smarter person should just let it go” moments?
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OP has offered the following explanation for why they think they might be the asshole:
> We threw sealed dog poop bags into a public trash can near a playground. The neighbors freaked out, yelled at us, and claimed it was inappropriate. I’m wondering if we’re the assholes because even though it’s a public bin, maybe using that specific one (so close to where kids play) was inconsiderate or disrespectful. That’s the part I’m unsure about.
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Contest mode is 1.5 hours long on this post.
Nta, fuck your neighbors
YTA. Dog shit stinks, even in sealed bags. Take it home and put it in your own trash can.
NTA
I’ve been on both sides of this situation. The playground parents NEED a place their kids can run and let off some energy. They also need it to be safe which means no used needles, no broken glass, and no animal poop.
And you are being responsible dog owners. You scoop the poop and put it in a trash can. Would it be better to put it in a designated poop container? Sure. Is there one? Nope? Then your decision becomes scoop and put in regular trash or just not scoop. Obviously scoop is better.
The parents are in the wrong. And I hope you’ll find some grace in your heart for them. They’re probably running on too little sleep and sheer willpower. That doesn’t excuse their poor behavior. And YOU will feel better if you find a way to let it go.
NTA. Public trash can for public trash. It’s bagged. It doesn’t say “kid trash only.” I have kids and we play at a playground that has a trash can. It always has dog poop bags in it. It always smells. I’ve never thought twice about it. Trash smells. That’s life. I also put dirty poop diapers from my baby in it. That smells just as bad, if not worse 😂
NTA by any means. Somebody needs to up their medication dosage, and it’s not you.
NTA. I live next to a playground that has a garbage within feet of the playground. Next to the garbage are doggy poo bags to use and a portable potty. And you don’t think parents throw soiled diapers in the garbage?
NTA – one of the major reasons they put trashcans in the park in the first place is so that people can clean up after their pet. If there were no trashcan there, people wouldn’t even bother picking up their dogs poop.
NTA. Bins are for the disposal of rubbish and dog poo counts as rubbish.
Nta. We do the same thing every day
NTA.
> They claim the smell is awful for the kids playing nearby, and that it’s “disrespectful” to use that specific bin.
are we doubting this? As a parent, it does suck when the trashcan by the playground is filled with dog poop and flies start gathering. So now knowing this, the issue of you being inconsiderate is if you consider this or not. You aren’t asshole, they are asshole for yelling, recording, reporting, but yea this does suck.
NTA. It’s a public trash can. Trash belongs in trash cans.
Mate if you’re bagging it and binning it you’re already in a precious minority too good for this world. NTA.
Info: is this playground apart of the housing complex you don’t live in or a public park?
NTA. But congratulations on living somewhere where dog poop is the worst smelling thing in a public bin. The garbage police neighbor is bonkers.
Yessss
NTA – you are being a responsible dog owner. Its a public bin and bins smell! Do these people go out at yell at parents putting nappies in the bin too?
NTA. What a world.
Your good.
Nta. It is a garbage can . But its pretty shitty of you. Don’t throw it next to the play park. Walk it to the further garbage.
And here I am just wishing for people to bag it up at all! NTA. They could organize and solve the problem (more bins about the park, a sign that says no poop with a location for where poop can go) but instead they want to bully you for using something as intended without a viable alternative.
NTA it’s a trash can. I’m sure parents also put dirty diapers in it so I don’t know why dog poop would be different. It’s not like you are leaving it on the ground for the kids to step in it.
put your used doggy bags in this neighbours mail box next time
that is literally what it is there for
NTA. These people are stupid. It’s a trash can. They’re for trash, which in my experience, isn’t meant to smell like honey and roses. The poop is in a sealed bag and being thrown away instead of left on the ground for someone to step on.
Also: as a mom of 3, I’m sure dirty diapers get put in that trash bin all the time – likely NOT in a sealed plastic bag.
NTA. Trash cans next to playgrounds almost always stink anyways. Juice fermenting in 90+ heat, dirty diapers, food waste, etc. Your dogs poop isn’t going to make it smell any worse than the other things inside.
If you want to avoid the issue then you can throw them out elsewhere but I’m still voting NTA.
I think it’s the same as people putting dirty diapers in there. At least it’s in a sealed package.
Apparently this has become a thing – people being weird about used poop bags in their trash can. Know what else seems to be a thing these days? Leaving poop bags all over the damn place in parks, on trails, and even randomly placed throughout the city.
They’re the assholes, not you guys. Thank you for picking up AND disposing of your dogs’ poop.
NTA
ETA: also a thing – letting your dog shit in the middle of the walkway and leaving it there for others to step on. Didn’t want to leave anyone out lol.
Nta. I don’t know what these people’s problem is but something tells me that they’re reporting you won’t go far.
NTA
It’s a public trash can
NTA its a public trash can and you’re using it for trash like you’re supposed to the bags are sealed and you’re not leaving a mess they’re overreacting big time if it smells thats on whoever takes care of the trash not you
NTA
That’s what trash cans are for.
NTA. If you are worried however, you could double bag it, which should help you avoid the headache of dealing with them.
NTA. That’s what bins at parks are for. Would they rather you didn’t pick up the poo?
NTA. It’s a trash can. People throw food and other things in there that will not smell great, especially in the heat. If the smell is bothering people, they can contact the municipality to make a complaint and it’s possible it could be emptied more often.
That’s exactly what those bins are for, so they need to get over it.
NTA
NTA. One minor note: When you are in public anyone can take your photo and do not need your permission as there is no expectation of privacy. That’s why paparazzi can’t be arrested for incessant photo-taking of celebrities.
NTA.
I do wonder if the residents feel like you’re coming into their complex just to have your dog poop, and then going back to your own part of town.
What does his consent have to do with anything? This is a PUBLIC playground correct?
NTA. That’s literally what the trash can is for. And garage cans are not supposed to smell great to begin with so that’s a weird thing for a neighbor to get hung up on.
Does it smell so bad they think you should rather carry your dog poop all across city to find another bin ?
NTA I think
Definitely NTA how nice would it have been if the woman would have offered to put the dog waste in her trash can, away from the park and kids, since after all that was her concern 🙄 or not. Sounds like she was already in a pissy mood and instead of communicating her frustrations with the person or people she was actually upset with she directed her negativity at you
NTA. It’s a public trashcan. Regular trash can smell just as bad, if not worse, than dog poop. Heck, a lot of dog poop bags are scented to help with this issue.
NTA it’s a trash can what the heck
Where I live, there are some dedicated dog poop bins. They all have a notice on them saying that if the bin is full you should use a nearby general waste bin. NTA
NTA. I and a few others got into this with our college dorm’s front desk security when we had an accommodations for assistance animals. They got absolutely pissy about the dog poop bags going in the bin outside the door because “it made the bin smell.” Nevermind the thousands of open food containers that spilled in there constantly and definitely made more mess than the sealed poop bags. It would get stuck in the crevices and rot because they never cleaned thoroughly, just basic wipe downs. The security tried to argue it was still “reasonable” for people with approved assistance animals to hike across the dorm property to the dumpster and throw them in there. That got shut down real quick when the couple of students who had mobility dogs got involved lol.
All that to say, there’s a lot of worse things that get tossed into public bins to make them stink. A sealed poop bag isn’t it. People are just weird about the poop bags. There’s always someone.
NTA
Some people go nuts when they have kids. This seems to be one of those situations.
NTA
You had trash in public, you threw it in a public trash can. Next time tell them you can just leave it where it was if they would prefer.
NTA. Do they expect trash to smell nice?
I’d take my phone out and take video of them back out of spite. Fuck them.
NTA But with the heat of summer I can see how it may smell. Can’t u find a different trash? Ppl walk by my house and toss their poo bags in MY trash all the time and it smells bad in the summer. I don’t mind in the winter. With you, I get it, it’s a public trash can, I don’t think ur in the wrong at all. But once it gets called out as smelly, couldn’t you just save it for a different can?
you threw bagged dog poop in a public bin. nta.