Dear Heloise: Here’s a suggestion to dog owners: Before leaving your yard, have your dog do their business in your own yard. I’ve asked dog owners who have allowed their dogs to use the lawn in the front of my home to do their business, “Why don’t you use your own yard for the dog to defecate?” The usual response is “Hey,I’m picking up after my dog.”

Picking up after your dog is fine, but the scent remains and attracts other dogs to the same area. Then dog owners wonder why their dogs are given a bad rap. Well, I say pick up the dog’s droppings from your own yard. — A.M.S., in Connecticut

A.M.S., I strongly agree with you. Yes, it’s good that people pick up after their dogs, but a certain number of people don’t. It’s not fertilizer; it’s “doggy poo,” and it’s unsanitary.

Owning a pet ha

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