Poop Patrol: The Doggie Dooley
September 7, 2007 by Heather R.
Filed under Pets
Easily my least favorite animal-related chore is poop duty. I don’t so much mind the litter boxes because those take all of two minutes, what I really dread is tackling the back yard. We started off just using a shovel but then we’d have to drag a garbage bag around as well, so we moved on to one of these. It does a pretty good job, necessitating only one trip around the yard (though we’ve got two small dogs, so your mileage may vary).
What I’m really interested in is a Doggie Dooley. The site says it’s an “Earth-friendly solution to pet waste.” Basically, you dig a hole in your yard, insert the Dooley, and shovel the dog poop in. Enzymes and bacteria inside the unit break down the waste so it dissolves into the soil, safely and odor free. Now if we could train the dogs to do the deed right into the unit we’d be completely set! (Kidding.)
Does anyone have one of these or have any experience with it? I’ve been thinking about it for a couple of years but I don’t want to get stuck with a four gallon hole of dog poop in my yard in case it’s not all it’s cracked up to be. The site says it can’t be used in freezing areas (no worries there) or locations with clay soil (we may have a problem), and according to the reviews at PetsMart you have to dig a four foot deep hole, which I don’t think is possible here without some mechanical help.
Since we got Dixie two years ago and up until a few months ago Ive always just used grocery bags.
I always ask for my groceries to be double-bagged. It’s become such a habit to pick up after her this way I don’t really think twice about it now.
However, this Dooley might be just the thing we will need for the new yard. Here at the apt complex they actually have doggie bag dispensers and containers for the waste, which is pretty cool.
In Florida the garbage pick up came twice a week but I hadnt figured out what the plan will be when we move into the new neighborhood.
Have to have my husband check it out. Thanks for sharing!
Hi Kate! We do the grocery bag thing with the cats’ litter box, it works out well! With the Dooley I like the idea of the poop being “recycled” rather than going in the garbage. I think my husband might need a little more talking-into, though
I purchased the Doggy Dooley several years ago when I got tired of bagging my dog’s poop – and got to thinking about what those garbage men must have to deal with when a bag bursts open – uggh!
I followed the directions; dug the hole, lined it with gravel, inserted the system and, to my surprise, it did work for a few weeks. HOWEVER, the waste digester which you must add weekly with a gallon of water did not digest fast enough and I ended up with a big doggy poop cesspool in my backyard. I eventually ended up burying the entire thing rather than pulling it out and dealing with the mess!
I have since decided to create my own waste disposal system – using a 5 gallon lidded bucket. I drilled large holes in the bottom of the bucket, dug a sufficient hole, lined the hole with about 2″ of gravel, and presto…same idea, but a heck of a lot cheaper. This time I used septic system enzyme which I add to a gallon of water and dump in the bucket weekly. It digests the poop quickly and in about 2 days the system is empty and ready to go again! Hope this info helps.
That’s excellent info, Shari! Thank you!
I love the idea, and I just convinced my husband to buy one when we get our puppy, but Shari’s comment gives me second thoughts.
Do you have a big dog Shari? I was figuring the small one unit (supposed to be good up to two small dogs, one large dog) would work with my small/medium corgi.
Hi Julo,
When I first bought the Doggy Dooley I had a 35lb Chow/Terrier mix and it wasn’t capable of handling her “doo”.
I now have two dogs – an 80 lb. Lab/Golden and a 40 lb. Border Collie/Lab mix and my 5 gal. bucket seems to handle their waste just fine.
Hmmm….so my (hypothetical) 30 pound Corgi probably wouldn’t be much better off. Thanks!
Happened upon this website…
http://homepage.mac.com/cityfarmer/PhotoAlbum22.html
I did the exact same thing, just used a smaller, hard plastic bucket with a lid that I purchased for about $5. I believe a galvanized bucket would also do the trick. Not sure you would have to use something as large as pictured unless you have dozens of dogs!