Photo: QueensPost
March 23, 2013 By Christian Murray
Neil and Danny Dineen, two students at PS 150, walk to school along 43rd Street each morning with their father and often have to walk around mounds of dog doody.
“If you look up into the clouds–and don’t look at the floor—you can stand in doody,” Neil, a second-grader said. “It’s like [walking through] landmines,” he asserted, and “People need to pick up after their dog.”
Many children like Neil have complained about the amount of dog waste around the school. As a result, school officials reached out to council member Jimmy Van Bramer for assistance.
Van Bramer and the school decided that the time was right to put together a public awareness campaign. They decided that the children should create “curb your dog” posters that expressly tell dog owners to clean up after their pets. The best poster would be blanketed across the neighborhood–placed in stores and elsewhere.
Neil and hundreds of other students were given the homework assignment of creating a sign, stating that the failure to pick up dog waste is a violation of state law and comes with a $250 fine. Students from Pre-K through six grade participated in the contest.
“They told me to make a sign telling people to clean up after their dog,” Neil said. “I think it is a good thing,” he said. “People need to be responsible.”
Meanwhile, Neil’s younger brother, Danny, 6, said, “We are putting an end to bullying and now it will be dog poop.”
Last week, the students had all completed their posters and the school and Van Bramer’s office began judging them.
On Friday, Van Bramer went to PS 150 and told the children what he thought were the five best. The ulitmate winner, he said, will be based on the public’s feedback and a number of polls. (see below and make your vote)
Members of Sunnyside United Dog Society (SUDS) turned up at PS 150 yesterday in support of the campaign. Furthermore, Sam Adbradouh, the owner of Wespaw Pets on Queens Blvd, has donated 5,000 “dog-poop bags” to support the program that are available at Van Bramer’s council office.
“Most dog owners are not guilty of leaving their pet’s poop behind,” Van Bramer said. “With the help of the students we will get the message out that all dog owners need to be responsible.”
“At PS 150, our students learn to be responsible citizens,” said Zulma Tanzer, an assistant principal. “As part of our social studies curriculum, they learn that being a member of a community means that they have rights and responsibilities.
Meanwhile, Joe Dineen—father of Neil and Danny and a founding member of SUDS—said the dog-poop “problem has been here a long time. “ He said he was a big supporter of the children’s public awareness campaign. “It teaches them to have respect for others and to do the right thing.”
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40 Comments
The whole topic is gross!
I am in 5th grade in PS 150 Queens I agree I live in a place where dog poops and garbage it gross! I have a teacher Ms. S she said we should do our part! We all have responsibilities but the most important thing to do is taking care of a pet! What the point of having a pet dog if you don’t care about picking up their poop!
– 5th grade
They’re all very nice but my poster was cuter I spent 3 hours drawing a dog! I hope Isabella will win!!!!!!!!!!!
– 5th grade
It’s not only that some of these a–hole dog owners don’t pick up after their dogs, It’s that most of them just let ther dogs pee and poop on our sidwalks and in front of our buildings where we walk and our children play. They should curb their dogs or be fined!!!!
Mr. Novak is the guy to the left of Mr. Van Bramer in the blue cap. I have no idea what was the reason that he was offered a speaking platform on that day. No dog owners run down with their dogs to the gardens to poop, just to run back up to Skillman Avenue or 43rd Avenue. Jimmy Van Bramer prefaced his speech with how he loves dogs. I wonder how Jimmy Van Bramer would feel about Mike Novak advising people to throw red pepper down on our city streets. Not a funny or smart idea. I don’t have much to say about Principal Parache. I only went to PS 150 for Kindergarten back in the day and Thank God my parents were wise enough (and could afford) sending me and my siblings to Queen of Angels.
French students launch anti-dog poo mobile app
http://www.france24.com/en/20130327-french-students-launch-anti-dog-poo-mobile-app
SunnysidePostHatesMe7 and OM @ Amazing, how much people have to talk about poop and, really ??? Dont you have better things to do or say about our neighborhood?maybe you should move to Manhattan or maybe the suburbs of LI, if you think dogs dont belong here,well you really dont count, people that cannot appreciate all the a pet can do fou you is not as companon and even help with you health,you are ignorant, mediocre and sincerely not worthy of my time to reply, the best advice is inform yourself and drink some sugar to reduce your biterness and please move to a land far far away,my dogs are too good to live in the same neghborhood as you. Some people worth less than the poops we see around.
WONDER WHY SUNNYSDE POST HATES U? I dont know you and already share the feeling. OM you just a frustrate poor soul.
This is so cute and very needed in the community.
I’ve always felt that kid need to learn from an early age about litter/cleaning a neighborhood or else they will never learn respect for it. I’m happy to see all these kids’ wonderful paintings!
Good job guys!
(This has happened a few times) I stood on the sidewalk @ the corner of 43rd Ave and 40th Street, on my cell phone, while Parachehe waited for me to move so she could drive on the sidewalk. When I refused to move, she beeped and I waved and smiled, motioning to her the proper direction to go. While she sat @ the light (which she wants to avoid) I asked her to roll down her window and said ‘Shouldn’t it be the job of a Principal to set a good community example for the children in her bldg?’ She told me to ‘^%$^ off’ and drove away. That’s when I sent my pictures of her driving on the sidewalk to the Bd of Ed.
The principal’s ‘academy’ is a farce. So many people who haven’t the slightest clue about education. It should be mandatory that ALL building administrators be classroom teachers for a minimum of 3 years.
RD
Rick:
“Principal” Parache is a real piece of work.
When she took over PS 150 is was the best school in DC30.
It currently has a status of “School in Need of Improvement”.
Parache has zero experience as a teacher, she does not have enough college credits to qualify her as a teacher. She is a product of the Klein/Bloomie “Principals Academy” where she was a star. As taxpayers, WE PAID for her relocation from the Dominican Republic to NYC.
She is a total FAILURE, but she is doing the job she was hired to do. Dismantle a truly great school and institute the failed “Teachers College” method at PS 150. Her first act, on the first day as Principal was to have all the spelling and grammar books removed from all the classes…because TC says they are not needed. She is a well-connected tool who just does as she is told…after all, she was not making ober $125,000 per year back hom e in the DR. 😉
Go to a 99cents store/liquidaters/street fair and purchase the largest container of red pepper you can. Sprinkle on the offending spots and watch as the pooches sneeze and find another spot to do their business. 😉
All of the posters are great! I’m voting for Matthew Sebastian’s.
Agreed. Also, dogs tend to go in the same 2-3 ‘spots’, so constant activity in the same area would tend to show a pattern.
Like I mentioned I have gone so far as to put up signs on the doors to bldgs in our ‘hood w/ the description of human/dog mentioning they refuse to pick up. Shame works. I just hung up a sign the other day on a street sign pole near the corner of 40th and Skillman, across from the bar, there were landmines for 100 feet, obviously same irresponsible dog owner, day after day. I have yet to see the piles since.
When confronted for not picking up (which I am never shy about) the perp will do the fake search for a bag and ultimately say ‘I must have forgotten a bag’, or ‘he’s gone 2X already, I’m outta bags’, etc. I offer them a bag and show them that w/i 10 feet there is newspaper, or a plastic bag, on the ground that they could have also used. They pick it up and that’s that. One ahole cursed me out, then the Irish ladies that sit on the benches outside the park let him have it! He skulked away, never saw him again.
RD
Rick, I agree that one incident of an individual with his or her dog nearby a pile of poop does not necessarily mean that the person is responsible for same. However, three, four or five occasions of the same person walking away from a pile of crap with his or her dog to me indicates that something is wrong. I have used pictures from time to time to give to the offending party, asking if they may know who this person is because I want to speak to the individual about leaving dog crap behind on the sidewalk. The person always denies knowledge, but I don’t see the piles in the usual place thereafter. Bottom line, signs and efforts like those engaged in by SUDS have value, but the reality is that a slob will not stop his or her offending behavior until individually confronted with same. I’ll contact you directly about walking the mean streets of Sunnyside.
Punctuation point: It should be either “pet’s” or “pets'” but not “pets” poop. If you need a copy editor/proofreader, Sunnyside Post, I’m available. I’ve got many years of professional experience and work for reasonable rates. I can also offer help on your headlines, they lack punch and often leave too much empty space on the second deck.
I lived in sunnyside from 81 to 88 as a child. attended the red pre-school that is or used to be near 47th and queens blvd. then went to ps 150. walked 8 blocks every day from the apt on 48th…and had to avoid stepping on dog waste. the sight was ugly and worse most of the time was the smell, especially during the summer. ugh. i guess this hasn’t changed.
well, i’m living in the subrubs now in a different state. i encounter the dog poop on the sidewalk sight only once every 5 yrs or so here. i still have a heart for sunnyside, but minus this issue.
You clowns don’t understand art. Isabel’s is far and away best in show.
Ruben, I disagree w/ your comments about dogs not belonging in the city. It’s a fine habitat for them and our apts are big enough.
People who say ‘I won’t get a dog until I get a big yard’ are really saying ‘I want a dog, but am too lazy to walk and train it’. ‘burb and country dogs tend to be uber territorial, aggressive and unsocialized. I see it all the time in the poconos where I have a vacation home. This happens due to a lack of exercise (they just sit and lay around in that yard and do not get the exercise they mentally and physically need) and stimulation.
As for what’s on our shoes, do you think all the other gunk that people leave behind on our sidewalks is any healthier? What about Chaaaaange Guys’s river of spittle? old food? etc etc etc.
RD
OM, I like the idea in theory, it makes sense. But, remember, some folks will be blamed for crap that didn’t come from their dog.
Many dogs will stop and take a sniff of another dog’s poo, that could be mistaken for someone not picking up, if they hover long enough for a photo op.
Personally, when my dog goes, I pick up any crap around that general area as well. I used to do the same w/i the park. The SUDS crew that used the park @ night for 10 yrs would pick up poo left behind from ne’erdowells during the day (along with all the human garbage left behind) @ the end of each night. We were usually there between 9-10pm.
The overwhelming majority of dog owners are just as disgusted by what’s not picked up as everyone else is.
In the past, I have resorted to shaming people that don’t pick up. Put a nice sign on the front of someone’s building “Why is there dog crap near your building?! Your neighbor w/ the beagle doesn’t pick up”. It’s worked a few times.
I did take photos of the Principal driving on the sidewalk, emailed and mailed them to the Bd of Ed and never got a response.
Though we have our differences, OM, I am generally up, on the weekends, pretty late and would be interested in taking such a walk. Before I go to bed I do a short walk (so I can sleep later the next day) up 43rd Ave and make a right on 43rd St toward the Blvd and then home on 41st.
if interested, email me @ sudsmutts@hotmail.com
Dogs should be banned from the city. it’s cruel to keep them in these tiny apartments and there’s way too much foot traffic. A dogs feces will travel on peoples shoes and sneakers into food establishments and the airborne contaminants go into your food.
but you dirty hippies don’t care do you? you just want your cute dog that allows you to spark random conversations with total strangers.
Rick, how about an arrangement where individuals can forward to a dropbox digital photos taken of offenders of the curb your dog and pick up the poop laws? Almost everybody has a camera on their cell phone or other mobile device and the ability to upload photos of offenders of these requirements for publication pursuant to reasonable, specified criteria may provide incentive for and/or a public shaming of repeated offenders. The fact that this activity may take place at odd hours is not an obstacle, at least for me. For the past several months I have walked the streets in the vicinity of 43rd Ave and 42nd Street late Friday into Saturday and late Saturday into Sunday looking for activity possibly related to a horrible crime that took place in that area and you would be amazed at goes on around here late at night. Someday I’m going to publicize my documentary, Sunnyside After Dark. If you want to get the principal to stop, take a video of her driving on the sidewalk and send it to her.
As a fellow SUDSer I stand with Rick Duro. He said what we all feel. There a few people out there that are NOT RESPONSIBLE pet owners, they are lazy and to be honest someone needs to sit them down and talk to them about pet owners responsibilities.
However, we at SUDS are doing our best to make sure our neighborhoods look and smells great. The problem is this: SUDS is not a police unit. We can try if we see someone not picking up to offer a poop bag. yet, even doing this has caused a couple of our members to get into a confrontation with the offender.
I’m glad that Councilman Van Bramer and the kids at PS150 did this. One “Pick Up the Poop” day by SUDS is a drop in the proverbial poop bucket when it comes to what I see when I walk my dog. We( SUDS) can’t police the streets day and night. The campaign and the signs will draw some needed attention to the problem. I just want to see some tickets given to the offenders and let them tell the judge about it.
My dog almost died from EColi ( which my vet confirmed came from dog feces) and he is not even allowed to go near any other dog’s poop. He’s been trained that way since puppyhood.The vet told me that the germs are on the street and they shed. It’s very easy for an animal or even a kid to pick it up. So, it’s not just the smell, how it looks, it’s poison, pure and simple. It’s a serious subject and it is getting addressed. I wish and hope for every success. I don’t want to lose my dog to someone else’s laziness and lack of concern for his neighbor.
SUDS and Kids coming together for a great campaign! Nice! I voted for my fave!
Speaking of teaching kids to do the right thing @ PS 150. A hefty fine should be doled out to the Principal of the school who regularly drives her CAR on the sidewalk from the self made driveway on 40th St to 43rd Ave to avoid the light. I have seen her do this dozens of times.
Nice example she is setting….
RD
New World Order-nice!
In a lesson on the Feudal time period I had to introduce some Chaucer, you should have seen their faces after a few paragraphs.
As I stated in earlier messages, of which OM is finally catching on, raise the fines for not picking up after your dog.
The Dept of Sanitation gives doles out the majority of these fines, but more should be given out, the trick is being able to catch someone in the act. It’s not an easy task. I walk my dog 4-5 times a day, and in the last year have seen, maybe 5-6 people not pick up (each was offered a bag and they picked it up). That obviously tells me 2 things: 1. These pigs pick up when someone is around and/or 2. they walk their dogs @ really odd hours.
When SUDS does it’s ‘Pick up the Poop’ Day we will take note of the worst areas (for instance, west side of 43rd street between Skillman & 43rd Ave, the east side of 43rd St between 43rd and Qns Blvd & the area along the park on 43rd st) and forward that info to authorities as high target areas.
RD
At the risk of venturing into off-topic waters, Sunnyside Post we are now in daylight savings time and the time stamp on comments should be adjusted accordingly.
Councilmember Van Bramer and Assistant Principal Zulma Tanzer should be commended for raising awareness in school children that individuals who otherwise seem to be good citizens, like dog owners, often don’t obey the law for their own personal convenience to the detriment of others. The need to be proactive to address these self-interested laggards to have them comply with their personal responsibilities is an important life lesson. The children’s efforts should be coupled with a vigorous enforcement campaign and an increase in fines to $500 to provide effective deterrents to this antisocial behavior, which would go a long way to achieving the children’s goal of having a dog poop free walk to school.
I love this story. This is absolutely fantastic.
Councilmember Van Bramer and Assistant Principal Zulma Tanzer
@RD
That’s just an olde wyvf’s tale.
I’m sorry OM, I’ll translate it into middle english for you. Is it true you were drinking buddies w/ Geoffrey Chaucer?
RD
Can someone please provide me with a plain English translation of Rick’s latest epistle?
This is, no dogsh**, my favorite story on Sunnyside Post. Ever,
Congrats! It’s now finally been proven, no one can be more of a total
d bag than OM!
Instead of praising the teamwork of all involved for doing good work for the community (of which he claims to do, but, we all know the truth…), as predicted our *1* trick pony resorts to his same ol’ same ol’. In this case, you really can’t teach this moldy olde mutt new tricks…
Some little kid’s dog passes away and you’re the one to judge it’s not possible (talk about ego!) he’s looking down upon them, because it says so in some book written a few millenia ago? hahahaha!! Get in line with the rest of the sheep.
The bond between humans (we won’t count you, as it seems you are some other bizarre species, maybe fungi?) and canines goes back well over 30,000 years. Helping to create civilization as we know it. This is proven, good luck proving your ‘animals couldn’t go to heaven’ concept….
Talk about a grumpy grinch. I ‘pray’ your anger, lack of compassion, horrible attitude and antediluvian nature infected none of your children or nieces/nephews.
RD
So proud of the Neil and Danny and Joe and Jen too! Great job guys! Shane really is wagging his tail on high at all of you and smiling his wolfish canine smile! Shanewally lives!
Praise the Lord, finally public recognition of this terrible blight on our neighborhood without the usual blather about broken glass, bottles of urine, and cigarette butts. It is simply awful that schoolchildren have to be concerned with avoiding piles of dog crap on their way to school. In my humble opinion, Sophia’s poster exhibits true genius in delivering the message with a memorable picture while capturing the
anthropomorphic thinking characteristic of the members of SUDS. I mean really, who else would believe that a dog is somewhere up in the sky, in heaven I guess, like a deceased person looking down at people on earth?
Thank you Jimmy van Bramer for the initiative!
Isabel Lourdes will win, this I predict.
Also very proud of my former neighbors Neil and Danny! Looking forward to some results. It’s so discouraging to walk all the way to school and find dog poo on my Pre-K or Nursery student’s shoe only to have to walk back home for a clean pair. Thanks for your efforts to clean up our sidewalks boys!
Thank you to JVB and his staff for helping to put this program together, and for inviting SUDS to be a part of it! A special thank you to the kids of PS #150 who took part and created some great signs. It was a very valuable lesson for them and one they won’t forget, community involvement/empowerment @ an early age is essential.
The Dineens are SUDS founders and I have watched their children, Neil and Danny, grow from day 1. I could not be prouder and their German Shepherd buddy, Shane, is looking down and smiling upon them.
Sam Adbradouh, the owner of Wespaw Pets, is a very generous man. SUDS looks forward to continuing our great partnership to make Sunnyside a better place for both humans and animals.
SUDS is planning it’s next ‘Pick Up the Poop’ Day and is hoping to coordinate it with the hanging of the winning poster.
Cheers,
Rick