But things changed recently as Shanghai Dongyan Property Management Company built three special "dog toilets" for the 100-odd dogs within the residential area.

Covering about 1 square meter, the "pet bathroom" -- with a wooden board with a dog's picture and a sign saying "dog toilet" -- was built along the foot of a wall and paved with thick sand.

"Following the smell, my dog can very quickly find out the toilets. I needn't worry about complaints from neighbors about its waste," said Tao, a 22-year-old employee of a local foreign trade company.

There are some 300 households in the Grand Plaza, and most of them are from overseas and are accustomed to raising pets and taking them for walks on the streets, said the property management company.

Before the dog toilet was built, there were conflicts between pet owners and other residents because of the pet excrement, apart from the smell, that ruined the clean environment, said Xu Weijun of the property firm.

In addition, the dogs' waste containing high amount of alkali would damage the green land that occupies 36 percent of the community's public spaces, Xu added.

Now, thanks to the new "dog toilet" idea, the Grand Plaza has been honored as the "Green Residential Area" of Jing'an District, marking a "clean and neat environment in the community."

But a city official voiced a note of caution over the dog toilet.

"Dog lavatory is a good way to relieve the community of pet excrement pollution, but the follow-up treatment is also important. Or, such toilet could generate new pollution," warned an official surnamed Chen in the Jing'an District Public Sanitation Bureau.

(eastday.com December 30, 2002)