Dog mess blight highlighted in TikTok star's book

A couple who document their three-year-old's adventures in nature on TikTok say they were encouraged to write a book about dog mess after being "shocked" by how much they saw on their outings.

Alex and Sarah, from Northamptonshire, said the account where they share videos of their daughter, Esmee, who is nicknamed Bug, out and about in nature is followed by more than 600,000 people.

They added in putting Bug's Life of Adventure: Dog Poop Disaster to paper they wanted to urge more people to "clean up after their pets".

"It doesn't matter where we are, you are sure she will spot some," Alex said.

Alex, 32, said: "Her followers put the idea in our head, as it was not something we would have pursued, but they said 'she could have her own book series', so we decided to have a crack at it.

"The amount [of dog mess] we see out and about on our adventures is shocking, for her to become so obsessed with it, says something.

"The overall message for people is clean up after your pets," he said.

Bug's mother, Sarah, 31, who comes from Rushden, said: "It's pretty disgusting, I get frustrated, people ignoring their dog going to the toilet.

"Esmee treads in it and we have to clean it up, it just winds me up."

A spokesperson for North Northamptonshire Council said its officers regularly undertake patrols for dog fouling, which were concentrated on areas where reports had been received.

Where there was evidence people would be fined, she added.

"If a dog fouls in a public area, it is the owner's responsibility to clean it up."

She urged residents to report incidents on the local authority's website.

"We welcome anything that helps illustrate just what a negative impact dog mess has on communities and Bug's Life of Adventure: Dog Poop Disaster does this perfectly," she said.

Alex said: "We visit places of natural beauty that are unfortunately often ruined by people who cannot be bothered to clean up after their pets."

"It doesn't matter where we are, you are sure she will spot some.

"She now thinks it's normal, in the three years of her life she's so clued up on dog mess already."

They said they wrote the book while juggling their full-time jobs and used a freelance artist for the images.

"It was a fun little project for us to do, it will be nice to show her when she's older," Sarah said.

"She's even been stopped and asked to sign it."

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