Guelph dog, and his owners, working to clean up local trails

Meet a Guelph dog on a litter-fighting mission Jasper and his owners are helping to keep the trails they love clean – one piece of trash at a time.

A Guelph dog is doing his part to keep his local trails free of trash.

Jasper, a three-year-old Great Pyrenees-Bernese mix, loves heading outdoors with his owners Lisa Hearn and Gabriel Navarrete.

“We get out, generally, for about two-and-a-half hours of walking at least a day,” said Navarrete.

“We kept finding coffee cups, bags, granola wrappers, that kind of stuff, scattered deep into the forest on the trails,” Hearn added. “We were sick of seeing it.”

It also bothered her because she grew up with a “leave no trace” mentality when it comes to the outdoors.

Now they bring garbage bags with them on their walks.

The discarded items they see the most are coffee cups, doggie bags, alcohol cans, cigarette packs and candy wrappers.

“The sad part is I often find a lot of garbage within a stone’s throw of garbage cans,” Naverrete said.

Jasper is typically the seeker, while Navarrete and Hearn fill the garbage bags they’ve brought along.

On Monday, the couple said they walked only 10 minutes and had already filled two bags with trash.

“This is really harmful,” Navarrete explained. “Not only to the planet, but to the wildlife, and everyone’s affected by it.”

The couple said glass bottles are also a concern, because dogs and children could get hurt.

Hearn posted about their litter collection mission on a local Facebook page and the response was so positive the couple started their own online group.

She is encouraging other trail users to join in on the effort.

“Consider the environment, consider your surroundings. This is beautiful land, this is a beautiful city that we’re lucky enough to use. If you bring something in, bring it out. Or leave it in your car, don’t bring it into the trails in the first place.”

Jasper, meanwhile, can’t wait for his next adventure.

“He loves them. Any excuse to get outside, he’s willing,” Hearn said.