Dog poop. It’s become an issue in Mattapoisett and now one young man, as part of a deal he made with the Mattapoisett selectmen to allow him to hold a dog walkathon as part of his Eagle Scout project, is going to try to do something about it.
Freemin Bauer, 16, of Mattapoisett, is a dog lover. He’s also a Boy Scout in Mattapoisett Troop #53 working towards completing his Eagle Scout Service Project. For his project, he wanted to find a way to benefit the dogs of his community but, now, his work will benefit the animals, their people, and the community at large.
“At first, I wanted to make a dog park for my Eagle Scout project, but we couldn’t find room,” said Bauer. “But then I started thinking, why don’t we do a dog walk?”
Bauer said he went to the selectmen and they approved his request to hold a dog walkathon, but there was a bit of a catch. The selectmen asked Bauer to work in a little ‘scoop your dog’s poop’ awareness. Bauer, of course, agreed.
He was at Harbor Days passing out “Do You Scoop the Poop” pamphlets encouraging responsible pet owners to scoop it, while recruiting participants for his Dog-Gone Walkathon on August 27.
“It’s a rain or shine event, and it’s twenty dollars to enter the walkathon,” said Bauer. There is a two-dog maximum per human walker, and the group will start the walkathon at 8:00 am on Saturday, August 27, by the tennis courts on Hammond Street.
The proceeds from the walk will benefit the most important part of Bauer’s project: repairs to the Fairhaven Animal Shelter.
“We’re going to be painting the floors and walls and inside the kennels,” said Bauer. He will also do some work outside the shelter, digging up the stone groundcover and replacing it with new stone.
Tee shirts will also be available at the walkathon. They’re antique orange, said Bauer, with a paw print on the front chest and on the back, “I’m a Mattapoisett Dog Walker.”
“I do like dogs,” said Bauer. “I’ve had dogs my whole life.” He will be walking his pug, Ziljian, during the walkathon.
If you don’t have a dog or a dog you can borrow, said Bauer, you can walk anyway! After all, it’s for a doggone good cause!
For more information about the Dog-Gone Walkathon on August 27, you can email Freemin Bauer at Bauer841@verizon.net.
By Jean Perry
