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The idea for muksak came to me when dog walking with friends and their rescue dog, Bitsy. We headed for a favourite dog walking spot, starting in some lovely lakeside grounds, then striking off cross-country. It wasn't long before Bitsy answered the call of nature and the ubiquitous dog waste bag was produced. This wasn't an area with dog waste bins, so having bagged the poop, we carried on, but the smell came with us!. When it came to tackling the rougher terrain, we succumbed to what many do, and hid the dog waste bag behind some shrubs to collect on our way back. Yes - we did remember to pick it up, but only just, having to double back for a few hundred yards to do so. But many don't remember, and from the state of our local footpaths and hedges, perhaps never intend to. |
This set me thinking. Staying with my aunt on Dartmoor, I joined her on an early morning circuit of the village with her labrador, Sandy. Once more, the dog waste bag was produced. This time a dog waste bin was only minutes away, but it was still a smelly business and didn't set us up for our breakfast! I felt that there had to be a simple dog walking solution, one that was easy, hygienic and, above all, simple and would fit anyone's chosen dog waste disposal method and lifestyle. My idea: the muksak.
All the threads of my background came together in devising the muksak concept. Previously involved in hi-tech manufacturing, my career direction changed when I moved to Cornwall and began working with environmental and conservation issues, especially waste and recycling, for one of the country's leading environmental projects, Eden.
Being a bit squeamish and sensitive to smells probably helped too! But, my main stroke of luck was to take my idea to a design & manufacturing company (Axiom Technologies) where the director, just happened to be an enthusiastic dog owner. He and his wife had the pleasure of trialling early designs on their family dogs - a Rottweiler and a Jack Russell!
With Axiom�s help & guidance, muksak has come alive and now from both personal and professional experience I am excited to think of the difference that muksak could make to our environment, to our footpaths and to our local neighbourhoods. Not just in providing a much pleasanter experience for dog owners, but potentially as a benefit to local councils in their horrendous collection & disposal costs and, more importantly, as a way of minimising the potential threat dog faeces represents to human health, farming and wildlife. And then let's not forget the experience of those who have to clear up or strim our verges and public green areas!
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