Don’t Doo It! Is It Illegal To Not Pick Up After Your Pets In Texas?

We've all been there haven't we? Walking around a Texas park, just enjoying a nice day. You aren't really paying attention to where you are heading, but you suddenly hear a squish.

You immediately think, "Well that wasn't a normal sound." You look down, and you officially stepped into another animal's...business we'll call it. For most of us, we'd probably be pretty angry to realize that not only did we not notice it, we've now got to clean off our shoes.

Yes, stepping into pet waste isn't a fun experience, but some in Texas might wonder if there's a way to stop the event from happening to them. The answer is well yes!

Get our free mobile app

Remember To Pick Up After Your Pets Texans!

So we looked into our area of Central Texas, and discovered various ordinances to stop individuals from leaving pet waste around. In Austin, Texas, the wording of the ordinance is as follows:

"An owner or handler shall promptly remove and sanitarily dispose of feces left on public or private property by a dog or cat being handled by the person, other than property owned by the owner or handler of the dog or cat.” Potential fine: Up to $500."

Dallas, Texas also has a ordinance regarding pet waste, as well as Houston, where owners can be fined too.

However, there is one curious wording of an ordinance we noticed. According to the City of Temple's Ordinance it is stated that:

"If an animal defecates on any public or private property other than the property of its owner, the owner of the animal must immediately remove the feces and dispose of it as required by state and local law."

Failure to do so will result in an offense committed by the individual in question. But while researching, we were unable to find any laws in the Lone Star State itself regarding pet waste cleanup.

So is it time that Texas enacts a pet waste law? Let us know by sending us a message using the chat feature on our FREE station app!