Green and Pleasant Land!

We do live in a beautiful place and I am very blessed to be able to walk along the canal bank and get to our church in about 20 minutes. As the weather was bright yesterday I walked to church for our Wednesday Women's Group instead of getting a lift with a friend. The surrounding hillsides looked very lush and green as we have had quite a bit of rain recently but the puddles on the canal bank had dried up in the sunshine so it was a very pleasant walk. Well, it was until I noticed all the rubbish bobbing about among the reeds in the canal. Take away food cartons, beer cans, bottles, plastic bags...I was really saddened to see such a mess and always am bemused as to why people can't take their rubbish and put it in a bin - there are a lot about!
But then I noticed something even more puzzling! 
I like dogs, don't get me wrong, but I'm not a dog lover and would never be a dog owner. I have come to understand something about myself over the years, and that is that I like the idea of having pets rather than the reality of it. When Martha pops her clogs, or should I say pops her paws, I really do not want another cat even though I am so tempted by the cuteness of little kittens. As I say, I like the idea of being a cat lover rather than loving cats! 
I digress, let me return to my walk along the canal. 
As I walked I began to notice tied up plastic bags in the grass along the side of the footpath. Several tied up plastic bags. Yes, you have made the correct link in your thinking to my talk of dogs previously!
I have often wondered at the people walking with their dog and standing around while the animal 'performs' and then skillfully scooping the offending matter deftly into a plastic bag and tying it in a tight knot, then walking on with the bag swinging between their fingers. Wondered at their diligence and evident love for their 'man's best friend' and for their fellow man in order to perform such an act of dedication. But it comes with the territory, it is your responsibility as a dog owner. But to go through all that palaver and then just dump it on the canal bank...?? 
I then began to wonder about the responsibility of cat owners. When other people's cats use your garden for their ablutions, aren't they responsible to whip out the old plastic bag and remove... oh dear, here I go again!