: News

Filed Under:

Snow Doesn't Freeze Local Pooper-Scooper Laws

February 13, 2010
Play associated audio
comments
Mark Burnett of Doody Calls in Fairfax, VA urges pet owners to scoop the poop off the snow.
Rebecca Sheir
Mark Burnett of Doody Calls in Fairfax, VA urges pet owners to scoop the poop off the snow.

By Rebecca Sheir

With all the snow around, dog walkers might not make it a priority to scoop their pooches' poop. And they could be breaking the law.

Washington, D.C., and Fairfax County, Virginia are just two local jurisdictions with so-called "pooper-scooper laws," which require owners to pick up after their dogs.

Mark Burnett works for the pet-waste-removal service, Doody Calls. As he explains during a 'doody' run in Vienna, Fairfax County also directs owners on how to dispose of doggie doo.

"All pet waste has to be double-bagged," he says. "And they want it to be a dark-colored bag. It has to be knot-tied, and that's knot-tied as in k-n-o-t."

If they don't they face a $25 to $200 fine.

And bad weather is no excuse. The laws stay in place even if its raining cats and dogs or, in this case, snowing them.

Arts & Culture

NPR

'Lunch Lady' Author Helps Students Draw Their Own Heroes

Can you imagine your own superhero? That's the question author and illustrator Jarrett Krosoczka posed to kids on a recent afternoon at a school in Washington, D.C. Krosoczka also described how he overcame a difficult childhood to become the author of the beloved Lunch Lady series.

Food

NPR

Oprah Winfrey's Latest Venture Is Farming In Hawaii

After Oprah Winfrey's friend and health adviser learned that 90 percent of the food on Maui is flown or shipped in from outside, he convinced her to turn a portion of her estate on the island into a farm. Winfrey is giving away the food she's now growing on 16 acres of land, but it may soon be for sale.

Politics

NPR

Health Officials Decry Texas' Snubbing Of Medicaid Billions

The state is turning down an estimated $100 billion of federal funds that would have paid for health care coverage for more than a million poor Texans. For Gov. Rick Perry and the state's Republican-dominated Legislature, the potential appearance of supporting "Obamacare" was too much.

Technology

NPR

3-D Printer Makes Life-Saving Splint For Baby Boy's Airway

A 3-D printer is being credited with helping to save an Ohio baby's life, after doctors "printed" a tube to support a weak airway that caused him to stop breathing. The innovative procedure has allowed Kaiba Gionfriddo, of Youngstown, Ohio, to stay off a ventilator for more than a year.

Leave a Comment

Help keep the conversation civil. Please refer to our Terms of Use and Code of Conduct before posting your comments.