Opinion By Wally Tuan
It’s time for the media to shift its focus from sensationalizing irresponsible dog owners to advocating for real change. We need to pick up strays, provide designated areas for pets, and enforce general littering laws. Let’s create a community where dog owners are educated, businesses are held accountable, and our sidewalks are free from “poop bombs.” Leash laws and muzzle laws are useless in regards to this problem, may be considered in child playground areas, but have nothing to do with the rear-end residue and butt nuggets being left behind.
Let’s not forget the businesses that use dogs as free labor for security, only to let them roam the streets like stray “poop machines.” These poor pups are left to wander, leaving behind a trail of “stinky Lincoln Logs” for unsuspecting pedestrians. It’s high time we fine these businesses for their negligence and hold them accountable for the canine chaos they contribute to.
In a world where cities like Taipei have mastered the art of canine coexistence, complete with doggy bag stations and clean parks, it seems the Vietnamese media has taken a different route—one that leads straight to the land of missed opportunities and doggy doo-doo. While the streets of Ho Chi Minh City are often littered with the turd remnants of irresponsible dog owners, the media continues to wag its tail in the wrong direction, barking up the wrong tree. They are stopping the wheels of progress like a crosswalk does in virtually every other city in the world.
In Taipei, dogs frolic freely in parks, and their owners dutifully scoop up their furry friends’ “business.” Here, the sidewalks are a veritable minefield of “tootsie rolls” left by untrained pups, while their owners sit idly on their motorbikes, scrolling through their phones as their tiny terrors unleash their “chocolate nuggets” right on the pavement.
The media should be focusing on educating these negligent owners, demanding city support for responsible pet ownership, and enforcing fines for those who think the sidewalk is their dog’s personal toilet. After all, it’s not rocket science to train a dog to do its “business” on unwalkable grass areas instead of the very paths we walk on.
Businesses should be penalized for allowing their “guardians of the garage” to run amok, creating a veritable “poopocalypse” in the neighborhood. We should fine irresponsible dog owners under general littering laws and extend that to businesses that treat their dogs like disposable “poop dispensers.”
Some expats love to reminisce about how things were in their cities, but let’s be real—nostalgia doesn’t improve policy or quality of life for those of us who call Ho Chi Minh City home. Instead of whining about how clean the streets were back in their day, they should join the fight for better dog ownership practices.
As a proud dog owner who believes my pup’s “poop” is the cutest of all, I find myself constantly picking up after other people’s dogs. Non-pet owners in this equation are certainly not doing this, but complaining with no action is diarrhea from their mouths to these web pages. They don’t care about the community at large, are too self-righteous, and lack the empathy to ever be a pet owner.
Let’s stop the “poop-shaming” and start the “poop-scooping.” Together, we can transform Ho Chi Minh City into a place where dogs and their owners can thrive without leaving a trail of “stinky surprises” in their wake. A clean city is a healthy city, and who wouldn’t want the health benefits of a stroll with their pet through a neighborhood free of “doggy doo”?
Finally, pick up your dog’s shit. If you are a pet owner, consider picking up your neighbor’s dog’s shit as action is education!