Anyone Every Used A Dog Poo Composter?

[Trisven13]

My husband's cousin has just started with a business that sells dog poo composters. Interested to hear from people who might have used on how they found it? Are they suitable for multiple dog households or more for only dog households?

[Rozzie]

We had one in Sydney. It did 6 dogs worth of poo. We made one here, same idea but bigger scale.

[OSoSwift]

I haven't as yet, but it is on my list to adress in the near future. I don't want to use worms so am looking at a composter instead.

[Meea]

I use worms. Limited space here. I would look at a compost deal if I had a bigger yard.

[Maddy]

I've tried two different methods of composting with.. mixed results.

The first was a standard compost bin and a large box of worms. I spent six months carefully layering poo, newspaper and grass clippings and it was finally starting to work when.. the bin broke (it was one of those square ones from Bunnings). Because it broke while we were away, by the time I got back, the entire lot had dried out, the worms had packed up and left and it was basically back to square one.

So, instead of getting a new compost bin, I got one of those dog composters that you dig into the ground and they come with the tablets. What they fail to mention in their marketing is that those tablets will not work with tap water because of the chlorine. Which is excellent. Fortunately, I had the foresight to test it first in a large plastic container so instead of having a horrific pit filled with poo-water, I now just have a 50 litre container filled with poo-water.

I think I'd probably be inclined to go back to the first method, but with a much sturdier bin.

Edited to add.. I think how well they work and how many dogs they suit would depend on a lot of factors, especially what you feed your dogs. Mine are all raw fed so their poo breaks down incredibly fast. For those who feed kibble (especially cheap kibble), I imagine it would take a lot longer.

Edited June 15, 2013 by Hardy's Angel

[Dxenion]

We used a can o worms farm but decided to give a Pet Poo Composter ( http://www.tumbleweed.com.au/PetPooComposting/PetPooComposter.aspx) a go as we have three large dogs and we either needed to start a second can or upsize to something with more capacity.

So far we're not impressed as we think the worms up and left home despite an ideal set up, conditions and plenty of free food. I'm about to contact the manufacturer about it.

[Loving my Oldies]

Yet another stupid, money wasting, polluting product to fool people into thinking they are helping the planet

Doesn't matter how small your garden is, dig the poo into it. It breaks down so quickly, you'll never run out of space unless you have about 10 dogs in a 2sq.m. back yard and never take them walking.

A bucket with soil in it would work as well.

[JaneH]

Also remember that if you are regularly worming your dogs, you will not be able to put the poo into the worm farm for about a month after treatment. Otherwise you kill all the worms in the compost bin, which defeats the purpose.

They are a good idea, but generally worms don't like only dog poo and will move camp to find something better. That's what happened with my experiement with all of this years ago.

[Teebs]

We had a massive one at a kennel I worked at, it worked great

Can you use the smaller ones with cat poo?

[JRG]

Had one - hopeless!

Spent hours digging the hole only to find that the liquid did not drain away very well. I am on an acreage so it was not a huge problem but it would be horrendous if you had close neighbours!

[Yonjuro]

I think they are a waste of money. Just get or borrow a post digging shovel, dig a 60cm deep hole as small in diameter as possible (if using a normal shovel) each time you drop a poop in the hole, chuck a handful of dirt on top.

Regarding he worm farms, most worming tabs and treatments many people use for their dogs will also kill garden worms when they eat the poop..

[Loving my Oldies]

I think they are a waste of money. Just get or borrow a post digging shovel, dig a 60cm deep hole as small in diameter as possible (if using a normal shovel) each time you drop a poop in the hole, chuck a handful of dirt on top.

Regarding the worm farms, most worming tabs and treatments many people use for their dogs will also kill garden worms when they eat the poop..

Whenever the subject comes up, I say more or less the same thing. Unfortunately, it is too easy. Only something difficult works LOL LOL.

It seems that people are so removed from the earth these days that they don't understanding how waste just breaks down. Someone even suggested once that, because I just dig my dogs' waste into the garden, that my place must stink.

[minimax]

I flush my guys poo down the toilet lol

[Loving my Oldies]

I flush my guys poo down the toilet lol

If Bunter poos on the deck, I sometimes do that because I'm not feeling energetic enough to walk downstairs, get the poo pan and trowel and take it down the back to the compost heap. I do feel guilty when I do that because it is sheer laziness on my part.

You wouldn't want to do that with dogs much bigger than mine though and if you had several dogs.

Best dug into the soil.

[minimax]

I flush my guys poo down the toilet lol

If Bunter poos on the deck, I sometimes do that because I'm not feeling energetic enough to walk downstairs, get the poo pan and trowel and take it down the back to the compost heap. I do feel guilty when I do that because it is sheer laziness on my part.

You wouldn't want to do that with dogs much bigger than mine though and if you had several dogs.

Best dug into the soil.

I have two pugs, and being fed raw they don't poop excessively. Plus being in a rental property means we can't go digging up the lawn (and the owners live across the road, and I suspect their top floor can see into our backyard, seeing as how I can see into their top floor :laugh: )

What if you have a diggy dog, I guess you just fence off the area you bury the poop in. Do you cover it just with a layer of soil, or have it like a compost where you put newspaper and other organic waste stuff with it?

I guess what I mean is, what makes a poop compost different from a normal compost? Apart from the fact you probably wouldn't use poop compost on food plants etc

[RiverStar-Aura]

Just wanted to add that at my quick glance I read 'anyone use a dog COMPOSER' :laugh:

I'm such a nob!!

[Maddy]

I flush my guys poo down the toilet lol

If Bunter poos on the deck, I sometimes do that because I'm not feeling energetic enough to walk downstairs, get the poo pan and trowel and take it down the back to the compost heap. I do feel guilty when I do that because it is sheer laziness on my part.

You wouldn't want to do that with dogs much bigger than mine though and if you had several dogs.

Best dug into the soil.

I have two pugs, and being fed raw they don't poop excessively. Plus being in a rental property means we can't go digging up the lawn (and the owners live across the road, and I suspect their top floor can see into our backyard, seeing as how I can see into their top floor :laugh: )

What if you have a diggy dog, I guess you just fence off the area you bury the poop in. Do you cover it just with a layer of soil, or have it like a compost where you put newspaper and other organic waste stuff with it?

I guess what I mean is, what makes a poop compost different from a normal compost? Apart from the fact you probably wouldn't use poop compost on food plants etc

I have a silly, young hound at the moment who loves to dig but once there's poo in a hole, she'll move elsewhere to excavate.

Usually, I use poo to fill in all the holes we get from having foster dogs who've never gotten to experience the joys of digging (and so they dig 24/7 for weeks until the novelty wears off) and there's never enough soil to refill so poo seems to work well enough. If anything, I'd say it's possibly better- doesn't seem to sink back down as much as dirt so it doesn't have to be topped up for weeks afterwards.

I was looking for a more permanent means of poo disposal because I was getting worried about the soil and the potential for smell. I can't smell anything outside but.. I'd be used to it so maybe it would smell?

[Loving my Oldies]

I was looking for a more permanent means of poo disposal because I was getting worried about the soil and the potential for smell. I can't smell anything outside but.. I'd be used to it so maybe it would smell?

I doubt it :) . You'd have to have an awful lot of poo and a very little bit of soil.

[SkySoaringMagpie]

We made one ourselves when we lived in suburbia and it worked well. We drilled holes in a plastic garbage bin and then dug it into the ground in the corner of the yard so the lid was just above ground level. Rather than using worms we used a septic system enzyme product dissolved in water every now and then. It broke down well and didn't smell with the lid on.

The only reason we haven't done that here is that we're now close to a river, and I'm not so sure it's wise to have dog poo contamination running into the river.

That said, I do drop it into the holes that they've dug around the place to stop them redigging them.

I can't imagine buying one that relied on worms - too tricky to work out when you can use it and when you can't if you worm your dogs.

[corvus]

Worms don't really like dog poo. I have a worm farm that gets all my household compostables. It's brilliant. I can hardly keep up with them. I worry if we go away for a couple of weeks that they are going to get hungry. But I don't feed them dog poo. I am a bit precious about them. They are my responsibility and as such I figure I should feed them what they most want to eat. I did used to dump my rabbit's litter tray in there, from time to time, though. I used wood-based litter that goes a bit peaty when it gets wet. The worms were wild about it and there were always big clumps of them in it. My worm farm supports a diverse little mini ecosystem. One time I came outside to discover the farm had fallen over. I literally screamed "Noooo!" and rushed to fix it. I felt like I was witnessing the aftermath of some kind of natural disaster. The worm city! It's collapsed! There are worm casualties on the ground! Quickly, we have to rebuild the city and get them safely inside again!