Can You Flush Dog Poop Down the Toilet?

If you have dogs you may have pondered the best way to dispose of their waste. Should you throw it in the trash or can you flush dog poo down the toilet? Here we will discuss whether or not flushing your dog’s doo doo is a bad idea. Here’s the scoop on dog poop.

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If you have one or more dogs, you know how much they can poop. Dog poop is messy, smells, and it can take up space in your yard quickly. This is a problem anytime, but especially when the weather is nice and you want to run around in the yard, barefoot or otherwise. You pick it up with dog poop bags, but what to do with the dog poop after you have picked it up? A lot of people simply throw it into the trash. But again, when the weather is warm, this can be rather stinky.

Newfoundland dog standing in a field of grass.

Sewer Water

When poop is flushed down your toilet, it ends up in the local sewer treatment facility. Here, most of the pollutants are removed before it goes into the river or stream.

Flushing your dog’s poop in your toilet isn’t going to harm the person who uses that toilet immediately after it’s flushed. It also isn’t going to cause any severe pollution of rivers or streams.

That being said, you should talk with the treatment center to make sure they’re able to deal with the pathogens that pet waste often contains. Dog waste can contain ToxocaraCanis, or roundworm eggs, and not every waste facility is equipped to handle that.

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Flushing dog poop down the toilet – without a bag, only the waste – is perhaps the best disposal method, says the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the National Resources Defense Council. Leaving pet waste on the ground increases public health risks by allowing harmful bacteria and nutrients to wash into storm drains, and eventually into local waterbodies.

What about cat crap?

Cat feces should never be flushed, as it may contain Toxoplasma gondii, a parasite that can infect people and animals. Municipal water treatment systems do not always kill this parasite.

What if you are on a septic system?

Do not flush dog waste if you are on a septic system! Processing pet waste may exceed the design capacity of your septic system. High volumes of hair and ash, not found in human waste, can clog the drain field. If you are on a septic system, place the waste in the trash that goes to the landfill.

Unlike human feces, dog feces can contain grasses, a lot of hair, and rawhide. These are all things that can clog the drain field of your septic system and can cause clogs in your toilet.

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Adrienne Carrie Hubbard

With cleaning trends and DIYs becoming more popular online every day, I feel like I am in my element. Hi, my name is Adrienne Carrie Hubbard and I have been finding creative hacks and tricks for cleaning for over 15 years now.

I enjoy looking for tips on how to clean the overall home, with a special interest in the bathroom. It’s the most difficult room to clean, after all! Yet the most important.

I run a Facebook group called Cottagecore DIY and Decor with over 18,000 members called Cottagecore DIY and Decor. We were even nominated for a Facebook Community Award in 2021!

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