I cannot tell you how happy it makes me to see new-to-me scoop law signs. (I also get way more excited than I should about clever features of pet carriers — it’s taken me a long time, but with this blog, I have clearly found my joy.) So of course I squeaked happily when reader Gail sent me two pictures from a trip to Italy, one from Portofino, and the other from Sorrento.

The Portofino sign — a graphic design disaster, but leaves no questions unanswered

Gail also kindly sent translations for both signs, so I know that this one tells you, in no uncertain terms, to keep your dog on a leash (brief pause while I sigh over the glorious word “guinzaglio”) and to remove your dog’s poop from public land and pedestrian areas. Making its point with crystal clarity (and a really regrettable font), the sign continues: “Excrement must be removed with suitable means, inserted in appropriate bags and deposited inside of solid waste containers provided by the city.” There you have it. No ambiguity whatsoever, and notice, too, how the leash law reference neatly ties in the picture of a dog holding its own leash (it’s an Italian dog, however, so reader Shannon could be right when she suggests that it’s not a leash but rather a stylish skinny scarf).

This is, in fact, the exact same image I jeered at last week when it  appeared on a Kansas scoop law sign, though the Kansas dog was facing the other direction. The Kansas dog was also green, and not nearly as happy — neither wagging its tail nor, um, bobbing its head. I worry about that Kansas dog.

Things are less clear in the Sorrento sign:

“Eco-friendly dog island,” it says at the top, and then “I do my business here! Violators will be punished according to existing laws.” Fine, but no word about picking the business up — and the dog in the picture is apparently covering over his business himself, with an extremely vigorous scratching motion. Or perhaps he’s just reaching for his own right ear.

Thank you so much, Gail, for the entertainment! Keep sending them, readers of Dog Jaunt, and I’ll keep posting them. If you want to see the others in the collection, click on the “scoop law” tag below this post, or type “scoop law” in the search box.