Poo Patrol brings together community groups who want to reduce dog fouling with scientists who study the public health consequences of fouling to devise and apply effective ground-up solutions to this perennial scourge.
Awareness of specific public health threats from dog faeces is low among the dog-owning public, leading to complacency and lapses in sanitary action. By linking dog fouling to health outcomes in the local community, and engaging children as messengers of positive change, the case for proper disposal can be made more powerfully.
Fouling of public areas by dog faeces has serious public health impacts,
not least by discouraging healthy outdoor play.
Poo Patrol's research engaged schools and communities to support and monitor their efforts to stimulate behaviour change among dog owners.