Poop

I was at a dog show the other weekend, an agility trial. I was standing near my setup (the accumulation of crates, bedding, training gear, treats, snacks, and dogs that one hauls to an agility trial) thinking about what task I needed to tackle next. Because at an agility trial, there's always something that needs doing: taking a dog to potty, walking a course, checking the running order, volunteering, even just sitting down for a few minutes. 

I saw a woman come out of the bathroom, smoothing out a handful of poop bags clutched in one hand. I happened to make eye contact with another woman nearby, our eyes widening at the same time. She said to the first woman, is everything okay? The first woman was a bit confused and replied, yes? then realized she was clutching a bunch of poop bags, and started laughing. 

I said, yep, that's some hardcore bathrooming right there. We all cracked up. In her defense, the first woman explained that she kept her poop bags tucked into the waistband of her leggings (because no pockets), and had to keep track of them somehow when she went to the bathroom. 

Pottying, and poop specifically, is a big deal when you travel with dogs. Everyone needs to pick up their dog's poop to keep common areas clean. And if you are caught by surprise with a pooping dog and no poop bag (because you used it when your other dog pooped), all you have to do is call out to someone nearby, and they will readily give you one from their stash, whether it is a pocket or waistband!

 Per AKC rules, we aren't supposed to enter the agility ring with anything in our pockets, but 99% of us will have a poop bag or two tucked away. They are as much a part of our clothing as our socks. We don't think of them as "extra."

Poop is a regular and accepted topic of conversation between people who do sports with their dogs. We don't generally talk about our own poop, but hey, it's really all the same thing in the end.