Cleaning Up After Dogs

I am writing this letter in hopes of making our community aware of a great program to help clean up the parks.

I am a dog owner who lives in a condominium, so I must walk my dog every day. Luckily, I live across from a park. As a responsible dog owner, I have always brought bags to the park to pick up after my dog, however not everyone does.

About a year ago I was asked to participate in a program to help keep the parks clean. In this program, the Park District installs pet waste bag dispensers known as “Mutt Mitts,” the city of Thousand Oaks supplies the bags and a volunteer keeps the dispensers stocked. I volunteered to do this in La Paz Park since I live across the street and walk my dog there every day. Three dispensers were installed, and what a difference they have made!

I have never seen so many people pick up after their dogs. In fact, if I have to go out of town and the dispensers aren’t stocked, I hear about it. I have had several people volunteer to help me with the dispensers as they too have noticed a difference.

I want to say thank you to the Park District and the city of Thousand Oaks for providing this program to help keep Thousand Oaks such a beautiful place to live. I would also like to encourage other dog owners to volunteer to adopt a dispenser in one of our other parks; they can do this by contacting the city’s Public Works Department at 449-2400.

MINDY ROSIEJKA

Thousand Oaks