At a Glance
- A northern New Jersey condo complex now swabs every dog for DNA to trace abandoned waste.
- Offending owners face a $250 fine after lab matches droppings to their pet.
- The program covers 300 tri-state communities and 9,000 nationwide.
- Why it matters: Residents say cleaner grounds and accountability make daily walks more pleasant.
A condo complex in northern New Jersey has turned to science to help track down residents who allow their dogs to defecate without cleaning up after their pets.
Hudson Harbour in Edgewater requires residents to get their dogs swabbed so genetic profiles are kept on file with Pooprints, a DNA dog waste management company. The company uses those profiles to match the dogs in its database to droppings that are collected and sent to its lab when owners fail to clean up.
Property manager Christina Ortiz compared it to a doggy COVID test.
“They have a whole lab,” Ortiz said. “And then they maintain a DNA database of every dog in the building.”
Ortiz collects droppings with a kit provided by Pooprints. She uses a plastic knife to collect a small sample, places it in a tube, and ships it in a biohazard bag to the lab.
“I mean, at this point, I’m used to it. So it doesn’t really gross me out anymore,” she said. “Normally within a week they give us results and they are able to tell us which dog it belongs to.”
Dog owners who do not pick up after their pooch could face a $250 fine.
Mike Gordon, who lives in the community with his 6-year-old Cavapoo named Eggsy, said it’s the price you pay to keep it beautiful.
“I don’t have a problem with that,” Gordon said. “I would make it steeper even, because there’s still some instances where we run across some people leaving some stuff behind.”
Eliana Marquez often walks her Yorkipoo, Lola, and said dodging dog droppings is an inconvenience.
“[It’s] very annoying if you’re walking, especially of course if you step in it,” Marquez said. “Why should everyone have to deal with your dog’s poop?”
BioPetLabs, Pooprints’ parent company, services nearly 300 communities between New York State and New Jersey, including 40 in Jersey City alone. Nationally the number jumps to 9,000.
“This is apartments, condos, HOA neighborhoods and dog parks,” a representative for BioPetLabs said. “We’ve been a staple in apartments for years, but have seen interest increase significantly in the HOA space in the last few years as DNA technology becomes more mainstream and pet ownership increases.”
Marquez said the program deters people who need an incentive to think twice.
“I think it could only improve the property,” she said. “I love the technology.”
Key Takeaways
- Hudson Harbour’s DNA matching system issues fines within a week of a match.
- Tri-state demand for the service is growing, with Jersey City alone using it in 40 properties.
- Residents praise cleaner grounds and welcome steeper penalties to end the nuisance.
