How much land is required to not poop scoop for average sized dog?

Question

I am hoping to eventually buy some land (at least 4 acres) outside the city, and I plan on adopting a bunch of "undesirable" (seniors, "bad" breeds, ugly, unfriendly, etc.) dogs. They would be indoor pets, but I would have a doggy door for them to come and go as they please when I am not at home.

Obviously I would likely poop scoop close to the house, but I don't want to have to worry about most of the property.

What is the minimum amount of land I would need for 1 average sized dog, to not have to poop scoop? Is half an acre (roughly ¹/₃ of an NFL field) per dog enough?

A few sub-questions:

• How would your answer change if the land was forested vs if it was dirt or grass?

• What about climate? I live in Northern Virginia; we have "normal" seasons.

• Would their diet change the equation?

Note: Ignore any laws you might know of regarding poop scooping, or any environmental impact from poop. You can assume I will follow all local laws, yadda yadda yadda...

Answer 1

You could put 6 dogs on a quarter acre and not have the poop take over. It dissolves into the soil after time.

My two dogs have 6' x 20' and I only clean it out a couple times a year.

Answer 2

It depends on the general climate and soil condition.

Where does the poop go? It has to be dissolved by water and absorbed by the ground.

• In freezing temperatures, poop freezes as well (kind of obvious) and won't break down at all.
• In hot, dry weather, the poop dries out. It's less dangerous to step on it, but it won't go anywhere.
• There has to be enough rain to dissolve the poop over time. Depending on how much rain you usually get, it takes 1 - 3 rainy days to dissolve a turd completely.
• If the soil is very compact, muddy or loamy, it cannot absorb the dissolved poop. You may not see any turds lying around, but the smell and bacteria are still there.

In my experience, dogs like to designate a certain area as their toilet that has light vegetation. But they avoid the smell of their own excrements, which leads to turds spreading out over the toilet area if you don't scoop it up or it doesn't dissolve fast enough.