Charles Askanas, who lives on Saraview Drive, says that the roads around his house used to be a very pleasant place to take a stroll.

But no longer.

"Our area has attracted a lot of dog walkers who do not have the decency to pick up after their dog," said Askanas.

He says that he finds this kind of behavior offensive. "I want to bring this problem to the attention of the city," he said. Askanas, who owns a dog himself, cites the example of Carmel, which is a very dog-friendly city but also has garbage bins and pooper-scoopers readily available. Askanas says that he had spoken with other Saratoga residents who have also noticed the growing problem in other areas of Saratoga.

Tom Standifur, who also lives on Saraview Drive, says the problem has really increased in the last four or five years. "The problem is much worse during the summer because I guess there are many more dog walkers," he said. Standifur said that sometimes dog walkers collect the feces and then leave it in a bag near the road.

He claims that he had put up several temporary signs asking dog owners to pick up after their dogs, but all of them were torn down. He gave up after the fourth sign was torn down.

"Permanent signs will not hurt. But how do you teach people to be considerate?" said Standifur. "This is just common courtesy."

Steve Prosser, the public safety officer for the city, says that dog owners can be cited, under the same subsection of city rules that deals with off-leash dogs, for leaving behind dog waste in a park.

"There is another fine for littering city streets, equal to an infraction, that can be used to cite dog owners who are not cleaning up after their dogs," said Prosser.

"Unfortunately, for either, we would have to see the violation to issue a citation to the concerned parties," he said.

Prosser said if residents notified the city, a sheriff's deputy could be sent out to check. "If there is a particular timeframe during which this is happening, we can send someone out," he said.

He said that the city would also want to educate and get voluntary compliance from dog owners.

Claudia Kawczynska, editor and founder of Bark, a quarterly magazine for dog owners published from Berkeley, said that problems with dog waste were common and she has heard them over and over again.

"This always comes up in cities and in meetings. I have noticed that people in the hill areas of Berkeley sometimes provide a trash receptacle so that dog walkers can use them," she said. "Some of these hillside neighborhoods even provide bags." Kawczynska said that sometimes people just need a place to throw the bags.

"There are more and more products that are sent to us to be reviewed that deal with this problem. There is a waterproof shoulder bag that can be used to carry bags with dog excreta until the dog walker comes across a trash bin," she said.

"I have noticed that a lot of people put up signs on their lawns, but this is something that the city can get into and educate dog walkers," she said. "It is a civic issue and it is a health issue and it needs to be tackled."

Both Prosser and Kawczynska agreed that ultimately it was educating the dog walkers that would work the best. "People should be made aware of their responsibilities. Sometimes they forget that we live in a civil, polite society," said Kawczynska.