NYC sees spike in dog waste complaints after January's snowstorm

As the snow finally melts in New York City, some New Yorkers are realizing their neighbors have been neglecting one very vital chore:  picking up after their dogs.

Instead of spring flowers, it's mostly dog poop that's emerging from the snow piles across the city.

Why it's a difficult law to enforce

So far this year, 311 has received 821 complaints about dog waste citywide, up 35.8% from the same period last year.

Of those 821 complaints, 510 were made between Feb. 1-16. In that period of time, Brooklyn had the most complaints at 151, followed by Manhattan with 133, the Bronx with 129, Queens with 89 and Staten Island with just eight.

It is illegal not to pick up after your dog and could cost you a $250 fine. But the Department of Sanitation (DSNY) has not given out a single ticket since the big snowstorm back in January.

"This is a notoriously difficult crime to enforce against because we have to catch someone in the act," DSNY Deputy Commissioner Joshua Goodman said. "When there's a uniform sanitation enforcement agent there, people are not not picking up after their dog."

If the melting snow leaving little cesspools wasn't bad enough, alternate side parking has been suspended since January and street sweepers likely won't be able to do their rounds until the end of this week.

In the meantime, the sanitation department is appealing to the ethos of New Yorkers to please, be a good neighbor.

New Yorkers sound off on dog waste problem

"Nobody can go anywhere. Everybody's slipping. It's disgusting," one person said. "The poop, the pee. It's really embarrassing."

"A lot of dog poop, garbage, mainly dog poop," another person said.

"We have to walk through dog poop everywhere," one parent said.

"I think people should be more civil-minded and take care of things 'cause it benefits all of us," another woman said.

Even New York's politicians are sick of it. In a video posted to social media Thursday, City Council Member Chi Ossé puts it bluntly:  "Pick up your f****** dog s***."