Clean Up That Mess Please!

We are all aware that is against the law for human beings to have a piss on the street, I am not sure if I am allowed to use the word ‘piss’ in the Gibraltar Chronicle so I will use the words pee or urine instead as this issue is really peeing off a lot of people.

If a person gets caught going to the toilet they will be arrested and fined and generally given a good telling off for what they have done is disgusting and vile and unhygienic and a risk to public health. Why is this? Is it because someone may be offended at seeing someone baring parts of their body in order to relieve themselves? Is it because there are private places where this type of activity can be carried out? Is it because emptying oneself of one’s waste and leaving it lying on a public thoroughfare is generally thought of as revolting and mediaeval? So, people are not allowed to do it but dogs (owned by said people) are. Well, theoretically they are not, and heavy fines are in place in order to curtail dog fouling on our streets but not everyone takes heed. When we think of dog fouling we tend to think of poo and not pee but surely fouling is both, it is in the case of humans so why are dogs treated differently?

I will now compare like for like: We have all become accustomed to seeing animals urinate etc. so it carries no shock factor when compared to seeing a person do the same ,so we allow animals to go to toilet on the street; that is a socially accepted norm. Public toilets are there for humans to use but in the ‘wee’ small hours when a person is worse for wear all the public loos are closed. Yes, Gibraltar has been graced with those dreadful cubicles but not only is there never one near enough when you need it, they are often out-of-order and when they do function they only take 50 pence pieces which, as we all know, are rarer than hen’s teeth. The poor human therefore has to hold it in until he or she gets home. Now, an idea has been mooted for special ‘dog toilets’, two to be precise, in an effort to transpose the laws of humans onto animals.  It is a known fact that dogs cannot talk, even though humans talk to dogs, often in a strange voice whilst shaking their head from side to side. Therefore a dog cannot tell its owner when it needs to relieve itself so how on earth is the owner going to be able to get to the dog toilet in time? Impossible! We already have laws in place for dog fouling. It’s not about where they go it’s about whether or not the owner cleans up the mess. Some owners do this where others don’t and there are some very odd people that put the poop in a plastic bag but leave it beside the nearest bin or just on the street.  Some owners go one step further and carry around a handy spray bottle with detergent inside where they rinse down the area afterwards even if it’s only urine. ‘Only urine?’ I hear you say. Urine is a vile and smelly substance, and although there are people who swear by its medicinal qualities, urine is potent, leaves stains and if not washed away starts to reek.

We need to ensure that not only should all dog owners clean up after themselves but they should in turn wash down their deposits, solid or otherwise, with detergent.  The laws are there and need to be enforced but in the meantime have some civic pride people.