Admit it -- you've pooped (well, Fido has) and you've neglected to scoop. Don't try this in Israel, a country that is serious about securing its borders...of cleanliness.

The Tel Aviv suburb of Petah Tikva is asking dog owners to take their pet to a vet to get its mouth swabbed for DNA. Then the city's poop-busters go to work matching "unclaimed" poop to its DNA database. Up against the DNA evidence, your dog's alibi ("I was home chewing the sofa legs at the time! Honest!) will fall on deaf ears and you'll pay the price of a municipal fine.

I thought about this today when my dog pooped near the train station and I realized I'd forgotten to bring a plastic bag. I rushed to a nearby friend's house to get one and avert having some hapless commuter start her day by dashing to the train through my dog's debris. But I couldn't find the perp's poop!

I spent ten minutes walking up and down the block peering through the overgrown grass for the evidence. The pooch was no help, blithely looking up at the trees as if she hadn't been anywhere near the scene of the crime. Finally, I gave up, reassuring myself that no one would ever be able to trace the droppings to me -- because I am lucky enough to live in Pelham, not Petah Tikva.