Omaha dog owners are speaking out nearly two weeks after the city's Parks and Recreation department removed trash cans around dog parks.
Hanscom and Hefflinger Parks are used daily by dogs and their owners. About two weeks ago, dog owners noticed the cans at the parks disappeared. Instead, they were greeted with a sign from the city stating dog waste needed to be thrown away at a dumpster in the parking lot.
"For me to have to walk back to the top of the hill, the steep hill, to dispose of the waste or kind of carry it around with you the whole time you’re here, neither of those are really appealing options," dog owner Brian McCormack told 6 News.
At Hefflinger Park, the dumpster is easy to get to, but at Hanscom Park, the dumpster requires people to walk away from the fenced in park area, which is where some of the frustration comes. Many owners don't want to leave their dog alone.
"I picked up my dog's poop, but it's 10 feet away until I have to leave the dog park and then I'll take it up to the trash can. It is an annoyance," dog owner Michaela Gabaldon says.
Some people attempted to protest the changes, tying filled dog bags to the fence, but Gabaldon said that was short lived.
The city's Parks and Recreation director Brook Bench tells 6 News the lack of trash cans is temporary, at least at Hefflinger Park, but what the city is trying to do is make it easier for city maintenance crews to empty the trash cans. "We'll be able to dump the cans faster and more often then what they are right now," Bench says.
With the dumpster so far away now, some dog park goers have noticed an increased amount of dog feces left on the ground. "If they can’t just dispose of it right away, they kind of just look the other way when their dog goes number two," McCormack said.
Bench said they will put a dumpster at each of the parks to make it easier for patrons to dispose of their dog's waste. The city expects the dumpsters to be set up within the next week, weather permitting.