July

If you’re a dog owner then the subject of poo is never far away.  It can’t be.  It’s a responsibility and much like the parent of a baby, it’s a constant concern. If you don’t know what’s going on, then you’re not really taking care!

I can well understand that if you’re not a dog owner or lover then it’s just a disgusting and unwanted intrusion.  Personally, I don’t think dogs should be allowed in city centres.  Their needs and lifestyle are just not compatible with large numbers of humans living in close proximity with limited open space.

That’s why I live in the country and why I take my dogs out into the countryside to poo.  Certainly I carry those small plastic bags with me in case I need them but I am increasingly disturbed by their misuse, by a section of dog owners with some faux idea of hygiene or appropriateness, which is completely wrong and actually, rather dirty.

I know I am not alone in my experience of finding small plastic bags of poo abandoned in fields and hedges, often near the gate to the road or wherever the car was parked.  What is the point?  Walk the dog 20 or 30 yards further on and kick the poo into the hedge.  Far better that than to leave it in a grotty little bag, where it will fester for possibly years and years.  Have you no common sense?

Even worse, and there are plenty guilty of this in the valley, carry a pack of wet wipes or paper towels with you and wipe your hands after picking up after your dog and then drop it.  In fact, do that all the way up the hill, and leave a trail of paper towels after you. You know who you are.  Why do you do it?

Poo is biodegradable.  It gets eaten by rooks and other animals.  Plastic bags are pollution.  Just walk those extra few yards to where your dog can poo in peace.

So as July dawned so did the dreadful day of doom when the valley was invaded by campers.  Has it been as bad as so many feared?  Have we been disturbed by loud amplified music, wild parties, huge mountains of litter and dozens of feral, obnoxious kids?  Not that I’ve noticed.

Has the entire character of the valley changed?  Has our precious peace and quiet been broken?  Have our glorious views been sullied by the sight of undesirables pitching their Millets tents in our own private backyard?  None of this seems to have happened.

What about next year though?  There could be many more campers.  Perhaps we should ramp up our protest and fight for our right to be selfish, whining NIMBYs all over again?

Or perhaps we should be grateful that we live in this most beautiful place and be ready to share it with a few visitors for a short period just once a year?  Perhaps that would be the wiser, kinder way?

Meanwhile, high above, work has started again on the white horse.  This morning a work party from Thomas Hardye school arrived armed with spades and shovels.  That old nag could tell a thousand stories about comings and goings in the valley – and it’s still paradise.