Repressive companion animal policies are likely to generate arguments and cause bad blood between owners, non-owners and municipal authorities. On the other hand, a policy that restricts itself to cleaning up the pavement encourages irresponsible owners. The best solution is to provide owners (and their dogs) with special sanitary spaces that bring two vital benefits: they concentrate excreta in a single area, making it easier to clean up, and they enable the authorities to convince owners to have some respect for the environment if they want their best friend to be everybody's best friend.
This is just what the Green Spaces and Gardens department in Paris did when it turned the center of the Avenue Rene Coty into a leafy pedestrian avenue. The department built eight sanitary spaces called "vespachien" into the kilometer-long promenade, making it difficult for owners not to behave responsibly.
The vespachien were designed so that they would not detract from the appearance of the promenade. When designed as part of larger remodeling programs, the vespachiens are relatively inexpensive to install. Each space covers about 20 square meters, is surfaced with a material dogs like, and fitted with a couple of substitute lampposts made of injected wood. This is all it takes to set up a simple, easy-to-clean canine amenity.
The Green Spaces and Gardens Department chose AFIRAC's recommended signs to direct owners to these spaces and explain how to use them. Users of the promenade say it is highly successful. The spaces are used so the avenue stays clean. A good enough reason to install other sites elsewhere.
Based on its success with the vespachien on the Avenue Rene Coty, the department has now installed over 50 more vespachien in the major public gardens in Paris, including the Champs de Mars, Jardin Citroen, and Buttes Chaumont. The Environment Department has built 70 pieces of equipment that offer innovative technical solutions to dog management issues. Soon, Paris will introduce an extensive public information campaign to encourage individuals to clean up after their dogs.
Photo credits: AFIRAC.
Read another document in this section:
- AFIRAC: Towards Better Integration of Animals in the City
- Success Factors of Programs that Integrate Animals in Cities
- From Dog Training to Responsible Ownership
