How to Compost Dog Poop at Home Using Bokashi: A Complete Guide

Written By Martyn Richards

Composting dog poo with a bokashi system is an eco-friendly way to keep pet waste out of landfills and even turn it into a soil resource for your garden. However, because dog waste can carry harmful pathogens, it’s crucial to do it safely and follow best practices. This comprehensive guide will cover everything from safety considerations and step-by-step instructions to burying techniques, commercial kits, DIY setups, and important limitations.

Safety First: Bokashi and Dog Waste Pathogens

Dog feces can harbor zoonotic pathogens (diseases transferable to humans) like E. coli, Salmonella, and parasite eggs (e.g. Toxocara roundworms). The good news is that bokashi fermentation creates an acidic, microbially active environment that reduces these pathogens. In fact, the beneficial microbes in bokashi help break down toxins, inhibit pathogens, and even kill fecal coliform bacteria. This means a properly fermented dog-waste bokashi is far safer than raw pet waste.

  • Effectiveness: Studies suggest the bokashi process can neutralize many harmful bacteria and parasites in pet waste. For example, the microbes in bokashi can kill fecal coliforms and greatly reduce odors. Some commercial pet bokashi systems claim to eliminate risks of parasites like toxoplasmosis entering groundwater.

  • No system is perfect: Not all pathogens may be 100% eliminated by fermentation alone. Unlike industrial composters, home bokashi bins don’t reach high heat. (Traditional composting would need to sustain ~74 °C (165 °F) for days to kill all pathogens,which most home piles can’t do.) Bokashi’s acidic fermentation goes a long way to sanitize waste, but caution is still advised.

  • Use compost on non-edibles: As a safety rule, any compost derived from dog or cat waste should not be used on edible crops. Even after bokashi and burial, use the resulting soil conditioner only around ornamental plants, trees, or lawns – never on vegetable gardens or fruit trees where humans will eat the produce.

  • Hygiene: Always wear gloves when handling pet waste and fermented bokashi pre-compost. Wash hands and tools thoroughly after contact. Keep the fermentation and burial areas away from children’s play areas and any water sources to be extra safe.

By respecting these precautions, bokashi can be a safe and effective method to deal with dog poop. Next, we’ll look at exactly how to do it.

Step-by-Step: How to Bokashi Compost Dog Poo

Using bokashi for dog waste is very similar to bokashi composting of kitchen scraps, with a few key differences. You’ll need an airtight bin (your existing domestic bokashi bin works fine) and bokashi bran (the same EM inoculated bran used for food waste, or a pet-specific blend). Here’s a step-by-step guide:

  1. Set Up a Dedicated Bin: Prepare a bokashi bin just for pet waste (don’t mix food and dog poo in the same batch). A standard 20 L bokashi bucket with a tight lid is ideal. If using a fresh bucket, sprinkle a layer of bokashi bran in the bottom to kickstart the process.( Tip: Keep this bin outdoors or in a well-ventilated area – while bokashi suppresses odor, it’s wise to keep pet waste out of the kitchen)

  2. Add Dog Poo and Bran Layers: Scoop your dogs’ poop as usual (do not include plastic pickup bags, even “biodegradable” ones, as they won’t break down well.). Deposit the waste into the bin. After each deposit or a layer of a few poop scoops, sprinkle a generous handful of bokashi bran evenly on top of the waste.. The bran contains the beneficial microbes that will “pickle” the waste. Press down the contents with a trowel or scoop to eliminate air pockets and compact the material – bokashi is an anaerobic (low-oxygen) fermentation.

  3. Repeat Until Bin is Full: Continue adding pet waste and sprinkling bokashi over each layer. For two medium dogs, you might fill a 20L in a couple of weeks. Each time, close the lid tightly after adding material to keep it an oxygen-poor environment. If you have two bokashi bins, you can alternate: start filling the second bin while the first one is fermenting.

  4. Ferment for 2+ Weeks: Once the bin is full (or nearly full), seal it up and let it ferment. Leave it undisturbed for at least 10–14 days (2 weeks is a common recommendation) at a mild temperature. During this time the lactic acid bacteria and other microbes will break down the waste and neutralize many pathogens. In warm weather it may be ready in as little as 10 days; in cooler conditions, ferment for longer (3–4 weeks if needed, especially if temperatures are below ~4 °C). The bin will produce an acidic “pre-compost” rather than fully finished compost – this is normal.

  5. Drain the Bokashi Liquid (if any): Many bokashi bins have a spigot at the bottom. Every few days, drain any leachate (“bokashi tea”) that collects. This liquid contains nutrients and some microbes. Dilute it 1:100 with water (approx. 1 tablespoon per gallon) before using as a fertilizer on non-edible plants or lawns. (Avoid pouring this on vegetable beds, to be safe.) If you don’t want to use it, you can pour it down an indoor drain – it’s actually beneficial for keeping drains clear due to the bacteria.

  6. Bury the Fermented Waste: After fermentation, it’s time to safely bury the bokashi pre-compost in your garden soil. We will cover best burial practices in the next section – generally you dig a hole or trench about 20–30 cm (8–12 inches) deep and mix in the fermented matter. Cover it with soil and let it decompose further for a few weeks. Do not spread it on the surface or use it as mulch without burying – burying is key to finish the breakdown and prevent any lingering pathogens from exposure.

Differences from kitchen-scrap bokashi: Composting dog waste with bokashi is fundamentally the same process (anaerobic fermentation), but you’ll likely use more bran to ensure pathogen suppression (aim to fully coat each poop layer with bran). The smell when opening a fermented pet-waste bin will be pungent but sour, not like fresh feces (if it’s done right, it should ferment, not rot). Always keep a dedicated bin – don’t mix pet waste into your normal food compost bin, since you want to keep that compost safe for edibles. Also, remember the output from dog poo bokashi stays in the ornamental part of your garden only.

Best Practices for Burying Bokashi-Fermented Pet Waste

Once your bokashi bin has fermented for a couple of weeks, you’ll have a bucket of semi-decomposed, pickled dog waste. Burying this material properly is critical for safety and odor control. Here are best practices for burial in a small garden:

  • Depth: Dig a hole or trench roughly 25–30 cm (about 1 foot) deep in your chosen spot. This depth ensures the waste is well below the surface. At least 6 inches of soil on top is the minimum cover; a foot deep is better to prevent smell or disturbance by pests.

  • Location: Choose a spot away from edible plants and roots. Ideally, at least a few meters distance from any vegetable beds or fruit trees. In a small garden, this might be a flower bed, under a non-fruiting tree, or a corner of the yard. Bokashi Living experts advise placing pet waste composters “well away from any food production and frequently used areas of your garden” Low-traffic, ornamental plant areas are best. Also avoid spots where water runoff could carry particles into vegetable areas or waterways.

  • Method: Tip the fermented contents out into the hole. You can mix it a bit with soil at the bottom of the hole to help soil organisms access it but it’s not strictly necessary – soil fauna will find it. Cover it completely with the excavated soil, ensuring no bits of waste are exposed. Pat it down.

  • Odor and Pests: If properly fermented, the waste should have a sour silage-like smell, but burying will quickly absorb any odor. The soil microbes, worms, and insects will get to work aerobically decomposing the fermented matter. Because it’s buried deep and saturated with beneficial microbes, it won’t attract flies. Still, to deter any digging by pets or rodents, make sure to cover the spot firmly and, if needed, lay a stone or some mulch over it for the first week or two. In most cases, pests are not an issue since the acidic ferment isn’t appealing to scavengers.

  • Waiting period: Allow at least 2–4 weeks for the buried bokashi waste to break down fully before planting anything in that spot. In warm conditions, 2–4 weeks is enough for the soil life to integrate the compost. You may even see the waste turn into dark soil within a month. In cooler weather, leave it longer. Do not dig it back up during this time – let nature do its work.

  • Re-use of soil: After about a month or more, the once-buried waste should be mostly transformed into rich soil. You can now safely plant ornamentals over that spot or dig and scatter that compost around flower beds, shrubs, or lawn. Many people simply leave it in place as a soil conditioner around an existing ornamental plant. Remember, even after this time, avoid using it around food crops to be extra safe.

  • Small garden strategy: If you have limited space, you can rotate where you bury each batch. For example, bury the first bin’s contents on the far left side of a flowerbed. Next time, bury the new batch on the far right side, and so on, rotating spots. By the time you circle back to the first spot, months will have passed and that area’s compost will be well aged. Alternatively, consider an in-ground digester system (described in the DIY section) which stays in one place and gradually disperses nutrients to the surrounding soil.

By following these burial guidelines, you’ll ensure that any surviving pathogens are confined to the soil to break down further and won’t pose a risk. After a few months, soil that has processed bokashi dog waste becomes a nutrient-rich zone that your ornamental plants will love, and you’ve effectively recycled your pets’ poop into the garden ecosystem instead of sending it to landfill.

DIY Pet Waste Bokashi Solutions for Small Gardens

You don’t have to buy a special kit – many pet owners have created effective DIY bokashi systems for dog waste. Here are a couple of do-it-yourself options ideal for small gardens:

  • DIY In-Ground “Digester” Bucket: This method mimics commercial in-ground systems at almost no cost. Take a large plastic bucket or garbage bin (e.g. ~20–30 L size) that has a lid. Cut out the bottom of the container entirely (or drill numerous holes in the bottom and sides). Bury the bucket partway in your garden soil – dig a hole so that the top rim of the bucket (with the lid on) is just at or slightly above ground level. Now you have an in-ground receptacle. Each time your dog does their business, open the lid and toss the poop into the bucket. Sprinkle a scoop of bokashi bran on it,and close the lid. Continue this daily or every few days. The bokashi microbes will start fermenting the waste in the bucket, and soil organisms will enter through the open bottom to help decompose it from below. This creates a continuous breakdown cycle. The waste level will gradually sink as it decomposes, so you can keep adding more on top. If it ever fills up, you can pull up the bucket, cap the hole with soil (let that spot finish decomposing for a couple of months) and then re-bury the bucket in a new location. Many people, however, find that an in-ground digester rarely fills completely because the waste composts as you go. This DIY approach is excellent for a small yard: it’s cheap, uses little space, and keeps the process contained. Just remember the same rule – don’t place it near veggie gardens or water sources. Put it in a remote corner or flower bed area.

  • DIY Sealed Fermentation Bin: If you’d rather ferment above ground and then bury, you can DIY a bin for that too. Any airtight container will do – for example, a 20L paint bucket with a tight lid. You can even retrofit it with a spigot if you want to collect leachate, but that’s optional. Add a drain layer (some people put a rack or a few inches of shredded cardboard at the bottom to soak excess liquid) and then use it exactly like a normal bokashi bin: layer dog waste and bran, then seal to ferment. This is essentially what the commercial bucket kits do, but you can make it yourself. One creative tip from DIYers is to use a second bucket (with a smaller diameter) as a press inside the first – after adding waste, you press down with the second bucket to compact everything and squeeze out air. A piece of board or a “potato masher” tool can also help to pack the material down. This reduces air pockets and helps fermentation. After two weeks, bury the contents as described earlier. You can maintain two alternating DIY buckets so one is always fermenting while the other is being filled (continuous cycle).

  • Bokashi Bran / Inoculant: For any of these DIY setups, you will need a steady supply of bokashi bran or a similar inoculant. You can purchase bokashi bran from gardening suppliers or make your own (using EM-1 mother culture, bran, and molasses to ferment your own bran).

  • Materials Recap: DIY pet waste bokashi can be as simple as: an old bucket with lid, a drill or saw (to make holes or remove bottom), and bokashi bran. If burying a bucket in ground, also ensure you have a garden trowel or shovel for installation. For sealed-bin method, having two buckets (one for pressing, or two to rotate) is handy. Everything should be plastic or non-corroding, as the acidic ferment can rust metal containers.

  • Design Tips for Small Gardens: Concealment and convenience are key. You can camouflage an in-ground bucket by covering the lid with a thin layer of mulch or even placing a decorative paver over it (just remember to remove it when adding waste). Mark the spot so you don’t forget where it is. If you have a very tiny garden or only paved space, you might do the above-ground ferment in a bucket, then bury the waste in a large planter or raised bed dedicated to ornamental plants. Always label or clearly segregate any container that has pet waste compost so others in the household know its purpose.

DIY solutions allow you to scale the system to your needs (for two dogs, you might build two in-ground digesters, or have a couple of rotating buckets). They also save money and reuse materials. Just like the commercial ones, they rely on the same natural process of fermentation and soil decomposition.

Limitations and Considerations

Before you dive into bokashi composting your dog’s poo, keep in mind a few limitations, environmental considerations, and legal points:

  • Not for Edible Gardens: This point bears repeating – do not use pet-waste compost on food crops. Pathogens in dog waste can potentially survive and contaminate fruits or veggies. Use the finished compost only on ornamental plants, trees, or bury it in unused areas of the garden. Many sources explicitly caution that dog compost “should not be used on crops grown for human consumption”

  • Pathogen Precautions: While bokashi fermentation drastically reduces pathogen risks, some hardy organisms (like certain parasite eggs or Parvovirus) might persist if conditions weren’t ideal. Always handle fermented waste with care. If your dog had an infection (e.g. giardia, worms), you might want to dispose of those droppings in the trash rather than compost, just to be safe. Proper aging of the buried waste (6+ months) can further ensure safety if you ever have any doubts.

  • Environmental Impact: Composting dog waste at home can be very eco-friendly – it diverts waste from landfills and prevents plastic bag use. It also reduces pollution: left on the ground or sent to landfill, dog poo can leach nutrients and microbes into waterways. Bokashi composting “keeps waste out of the landfill” and reduces groundwater contamination by killing pathogens in situ. Moreover, anaerobic fermentation in a sealed bokashi produces minimal greenhouse gases (it even prevents methane that would form if the waste rotted in a dump). So from an environmental standpoint, it’s a win — as long as you do it correctly. Incorrectly composted pet waste (or simply burying raw poo without fermenting) could still pose a pollution risk, so follow the guidelines.

  • Odor Control: A properly managed bokashi pet waste bin should not smell strongly. You might catch a whiff of sour ferment when opening the lid, but it shouldn’t reek of feces. If you do notice strong rotten odors, it may be a sign of not enough bran or too much air getting in. Adjust by adding more inoculant and ensuring a tighter seal. The final buried waste, once covered with soil, should produce no detectable smell at the surface.

  • Volume and Capacity: Two dogs produce a lot of waste (the average medium dog produces ~180 kg per year). Be prepared to supply enough bran and have enough capacity to ferment it. With a small garden, you might need to manage your burial spots so you don’t run out of space. One strategy is to compost in batches and only bury when a bin is full, rather than burying daily. Continuous in-ground systems help here, as they significantly reduce volume of waste over time (composting can reduce waste volume by ~50%) and you rarely have to find new holes. If you have very limited soil area (say just flower pots), then pet waste bokashi might not be practical – you do need some ground to bury into.

  • Cold Weather: Fermentation slows in cold temperatures. In a UK winter, for instance, you’ll want to keep the bokashi bin somewhere that doesn’t freeze – perhaps a shed or garage – and give it extra time to ferment.The buried waste will also break down more slowly in winter, so consider having multiple bins or digesters to rotate through the slower season.

  • Legal and Community Considerations: In most places, composting your own pet’s waste on your property is legal and generally falls under proper waste management (and it’s certainly better than leaving it on the ground, which can carry fines). There are usually laws requiring you to pick up after your dog in public, but not many explicit laws against composting it at home. For example, no nationwide law in England forbids it, and the main rule is not to cause a public health nuisance.That said, if you live in an apartment or rent, check your community or landlord rules about composting. Do it considerately – a well-managed bokashi shouldn’t smell or leak, so it’s unlikely to bother neighbors. In fact, some municipalities encourage pet waste composting in dedicated bins as a greener solution. Always avoid disposing of pet waste in public compost programs or green waste bins unless they explicitly allow it (most don’t, due to safety regulations).

  • Alternative Methods: Bokashi is one great method, but for completeness, be aware of others. Some pet owners use vermicomposting (worm bins) to process dog poo, or specialised septic-style digesters. Each has pros/cons (worms can be finicky about diet; septic digesters require adding water and enzymes). Bokashi is generally one of the fastest and most odor-free ways to handle pet waste and it works well even in small spaces. If you were considering flushing dog poo down the toilet as an alternative: note that many municipalities advise against flushing pet waste, as treatment plants may not kill all parasites and it can strain the system.

In summary, bokashi composting your dogs’ waste is entirely feasible and safe if you stick to the guidelines. It turns an “ick” chore into something productive for your garden’s ornamental areas, and it keeps plastic bags of poo out of the landfill. Start with a small trial – perhaps one bin – and you’ll quickly see how effective it can be. With a little effort and the power of beneficial microbes, you can manage dog poo in a small garden efficiently, responsibly, and with minimal odor. Happy composting (and happy plants)!

Sources:

Martyn Richards
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