What's the poop on dog manure

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I have a dog kennel with about 150 dogs. For the past year I have been dumping the hay and dog manure in a small field beside the kennel. It now seems that my wife thinks this would be the perfect place to plant a veggie garden. If I was to till this field up and maybe cover with black plastic, what health risks would I be taking? How long should I wait before using this area?

I have a book "Year Round Vegetables, Fruits and Flowers for Metro Houston" by Bob Randall Ph.D, Executive Director of Urban Harvest here in Houston. He has a section dealing with manures of different origins. He doesn't have anything on dog manure but he does have a section on human manure. He says, "Well composted human manure is an excellent fertilizer. Probably no ancient civilization would have survived without it. And of course, human manure must be returned to the earth in large quantities anyway, even by "advanced" civilizations like Houston, so recycling it is in everyon's enterest."

So what do you think? Anyone with any experience in these matters?

-- Ken Donnell, Plantersville, TX (palooza98@ev1.net), February 14, 2002

Answers

Funny, I've only got seven and I'm pooped imagine who you must feel? What breed are they?

-- Chandler (Providencefarms2001@yahoo.com), February 14, 2002.

Yes, human and dog manure make good fertilizer BUT not for vegetables- -only for shrubs, trees and flowers.

This is because of the possible biohazard created because humans and dogs eat meat.

Theoretically, if you have the right mixture the whole compost will get hot and this takes care of alot of germs--but I have always heard to avoid dog and human manure for anything you eat.

-- Ann Markson (tngreenacres@hotmail.com), February 14, 2002.


This came up awhile back and these are the links that I have on it: Dog Manure Composting Dog Manure Composting

Dog Manure Composting Recipe

-- BC (desertdweller44@yahoo.com), February 14, 2002.


I just read the article from the Universaty in Alaska and again it is not a good idea because you can not be sure of killing the round worms and other dangerous buggies in dog or human waste. The article at the last said they still were not sure if composting would do the trick. True lots of countries do use human but go visit them and eat or drink the local water or food. Been there done that, in more than one country.

Also I'm sure glad I don't live on the other side of that small field with dog poop and 150 dogs barking. Just kidding wonder what breed they are.

-- David in Norht Al (bluewaterfarm@mindspring.com), February 14, 2002.


I'm not sure I'd classify Houston as an "advanced" civilization. :-)

-- chuck in md (woah@mission4me.com), February 14, 2002.


I have several dogs, and a huge organic garden. We never put the poopy straw in the garden, not from the dogs. Peee Yewwww. I can't stand the smell of dog poopy. Plus it's not clean, you can get tapeworms and all sorts of nasties in dog poop. Some of the little eggs and parasites live for months and months even in wet, cold dirt.

We use cow, horse, goat and rabbit poopy for the garden. It's worth it to have a few rabbits just for the manure for the garden. Get her some rabbits. You can put the rabbit poopy right on the rows, it's called "cold manure", won't burn anything.

-- Cindy in KY (solidrockranch@msn.com), February 14, 2002.


ive used dog manure for gardens, just dont plant root crops in it

-- mongkesbrotherogodei (keithmedic@yahoo.com), February 14, 2002.

Absolutely do not grow anything for human or animal consumption in soil contaminated with dog manure until it has set fallow for at least two years. You can contract fatal microscopic parasites this way. Very bad idea.

-- Skip in Western WA (sundaycreek@gnrac.net), February 14, 2002.

I agree with the others who don't recommend using dog manure. Alot of animals eat canned meat food which can cause many different parasites that can kill. Any animal that eats vegetation should be fine, but I wouldn't use dog manure. Some think it's ok to use it on flower beds but, I'd think twice about that too since you use your hands alot in flower gardening and any soil contamination under the fingernails can easily get into the mouth.

-- rosemary (rosemary.lester@ citynet.net), February 15, 2002.

I'm a vegetarian. Does that mean that mine doesn't "stink"?

-- Soni (thomkilroy@hotmail.com), February 15, 2002.


I read an account of some wild folks off the Yukon river in Alaska who used the sled dog poop as one of their main soil builders. That was in Coming into the Country, by McFee. I would lay your plastic and cook it good; your not in the Alaskan bush. Give it a year underplastic, and then a year with a green manure like buckwheat, or feild peas, or a sacrificial root crop, and worms lots of worms. From now on bake the doggy do to sterility first in an outdoor oven, then put it in the field; save yourself a lot of worries.

-- roberto pokachinni (pokachinni@yahoo.com), February 16, 2002.

Ken, I'll probably catch flak on this but I think that you have accidently discovered the right method. That is, dog manure PLUS hay. You thus have the nitrogen source to help compost the manure. For 25 years, I always had at least 2 coonhounds and they were great in converting the bones to instant calcium and phosphorus plant food. At same time, had up to 80 rabbits. There was always a big compost pile of dog and rabbit manure plus straw bedding from both the dogs and rabbits and everything else from the garden and kitchen. Always hot and never an odor problem. When pile got too big and worked out, we'd dig trenches about a foot deep and fill them nearly to the top and then cover with an inch or so of soil. Just enough for seeds to germinate in. Bush beans would grow like shrubs and ground would be full of earthworms. Peppers especially loved it.

Remember. Plants grow and are eaten by herbivores. Herbivores eaten by carnivores. What goes in must come out. Been going on long before the age of the dinosaurs!

Martin

-- Martin Longseth (paquebot@merr.com), February 17, 2002.


Well first things first: 1. Human most have a vegetarian diet, for their poop becomes a good fertilizer. 2. The same with dogs. I did it with my dogs poop some time ago, but first I changed their diet, I bought very cheap rice, and I cooked rice with sardines, (very cheap sardines) I fed my dogs very economical, and I used their poop for my garden but only for my flowers and bananas, I did this when I spent sometime in Dominican Republic, the soil in there was very poor, but we got a good amount of rain during the raining season. If your animals and your human have a regular american-rich in protein diet, the feces are not good for your garden. Ralph

-- Ralph (rroces1@yahoo.com), February 19, 2002.

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