DIY: Pooper Scooper

Taking your dog for a walk is good for a lot of reasons. First and foremost, your pet needs to relieve itself -- preferably outside of your home. Other benefits are the quality time you get to spend with your pet and the invaluable exercise that you both receive. Certainly as a polite and responsible pet owner, it's your duty to clean up after your best friend, and a pooper scooper can make that courtesy quite easy.

  1. Make a DIY Pooper Scooper

    • You can purchase a device for picking up your dog's business, or you can save yourself the bucks and make your own pooper scooper. It's easy to repurpose items you would normally just throw out by turning them into handy, inexpensive tools instead. Another advantage is that unlike a commercially produced scooper, you won't need to clean and sanitize the DIY pooper scooper after using it if you don't want to. Just dispose of it as you would any plastic container.

      Choose a clean, empty plastic milk jug appropriate for the size of your dog. A quart container is perfect for tiny or small dogs, a half-gallon for medium-size dogs and a gallon for large pets. Using a utility knife or strong scissors, cut the bottom of the jug off about a half-inch from the base. Then, starting at the base edge, cut away a "U" shape from the handle side of the jug, leaving the handle portion intact and forming a scoop. (Start with a small "U" shape and cut away more if need be.) Put your pooper scooper in a clean plastic bag along with a few extra plastic bags, and invite your dog to take a nice long stroll with you.

    Using the DIY Pooper Scooper

    • Hold the pooper scooper by its handle and pick up your pet's droppings with it. Use one of the spare plastic bags to cover one hand as a makeshift glove to aid in guiding the poop into the scooper in your other hand, if necessary. Dump the poop into a clean plastic bag and tie it shut.

      Put the pooper scooper in a separate clean plastic bag, should you need to use it again. Store all soiled materials in a clean plastic bag and dispose of them properly.