The proverbial is hitting the fan around Cambridge as cyclists and horse riders clash over etiquette on shared trails.
A Waikato District Council by-law states that any manure causing a nuisance in a public place has to be removed the same day.
But piles of dung can be found along the newly developed Te Awa River Ride and cyclists are kicking up a stink.
Philippa Stevenson runs a local community news website and isn’t happy, “we've got a wonderful amenity in the Te Awa River Ride and we don't want horse dung stinking it up”.
She says a discussion about the issue on her website got quite heated, but says most contributors agreed the poop should be removed. Many see it as a responsibility of the horse owner, just as dog owners are responsible for removing dog poo.
However, long-time rider Laura Fell says it’s not that simple, “it’s not ideal to stop and get off your horse, especially if the horse is flighty”.
It’s true this can be dangerous, especially if close to a main road, plus there’s the issue of what to do with the manure, “we're not going to carry shovels and what about the size of the bag? It can be two kilos, that's quite a large bag,” Fell says.
It is an issue for walkers and cyclists though, especially as tracks like the Te Awa River Ride become more popular.
Horses answer the call of nature up to 10 times a day, depositing some 20kg of manure all up. Riders who ignore their responsibility can be fined by Waikato District Council, but the council says it prefers to educate. The trouble is it’s difficult to catch which ones aren’t abiding by the by-law.
Not far away in Taupō, it seems they have a solution. “We police it ourselves” says Bev Burkitt. Burkitt has been a prominent advocate for horses and riders for decades, and believes the future is all about co-operation.
Members of the horse community keep an eye out and let Burkitt know if someone has failed to clean up. Burkitt then takes control “there’s no use yelling, we just talk to them and explain what will happen if we don't maintain protocol and pick it up”.
She says the number of bridleways and shared-use tracks is under threat with increasing urbanisation, so she wants to make sure they’re able to use as many as possible.
Burkitt agrees it can be dangerous to remove the dung as soon as it’s dropped, especially with thoroughbreds that are common in Cambridge, as they tend to have a more nervous disposition. She advises a quick return to the site before leaving for home.
She also says it’s fine to kick or shovel the manure off the concrete path into a grass verge, “if you kick it on to the grass, it will disperse it in no time”.
Manure is largely made up of digested grass and water. It quickly stops smelling and can make for great compost if someone wants to retrieve it and use it in their garden.
All in all, Burkitt believes respecting everyone’s choice of recreation is the way forward. “We don't have a lot of trouble now,” she says.
“Just because we've educated people," she hopes other parts of the country can do the same.
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