Dog Parks ?

[Jamila]

I am planning on moving to a bigger city here soon. I'm so excited about it. Where I live now is a very small town so there is no dog park. This city I'm moving to has a dog park. I want to take my kids so badly. I'm kinda scared though. Can someone tell me some good and bad dog park stories/experiences. I want to know what to expect.

I have already done some research on the dog park that is there. So far the only sad thing is there is a limit of two dogs per person. In the beginning it will be okay cause I will only take one dog at a time but once they get use to it I want to be able to take them all. Maybe if I become a regular it wont be a big deal. Or I know, I need to make a friend up there and they can come with


These are the rules of this park. Are they typical?
DOGS:
Be a good dog.


HUMANS:
Park is closed from dark until dawn.

Dog owners must carry a leash at all times.

Dogs must be leashed when entering and exiting the park.

Dogs in park shall remain off leash.

Dogs must be licensed and vaccinated. Dogs must wear a collar
with identification and rabies tags at all times.

No puppies under 4 months of age.

Owners must remain in the park with their dog while the dog is off
leash
.
Dogs must be in view and within voice control of their owners.

No dogs in heat allowed.

Limit of 2 dogs per person.

Owners must pick up their dogs feces. Bags and trashcans are
provided. Please place waste in bags and then in trashcans.

Owners please fill any holes your dog digs.

No food (dog or human), rawhides, alcohol, or glass bottles
permitted in the park. Training treats allowed; but this is not a
training facility.

No smoking in the park. Cigarette butts are dangerous if swallowed by
dogs.

For their safety, babies and toddlers are not allowed in Dog Park.

Children under 10 years old are not recommended in Dog Park. If
present, children are not allowed to run with, shout at, or chase
after dogs in the park.

Dogs showing signs of aggression must be leashed and/or
immediately removed from park.

Small dog area for dogs of 30 pounds or less. Larger dogs allowed
if handicapped or elderly.

Do you think that this means small dogs are allowed in the big dog area? Lucky likes to stalk small fluffy things!!!

Please if you have some stories good or bad I'd love to hear them...

[Punkygirl0101]

The only bad things I have encountered are dogs that are semi aggressive. There are people who bring dogs that should NOT be in public places with dogs. And there are a lot of people who go there so THEY can socialize with people, and don't supervise their dogs.

Around here the rules are pretty much that the dog MUST be good off leash, and must have a good recall and listen to their owners when they are given a command (A lot of the time that doesn't work). You have to clean up after your dog. Yours has a lot more rules than mine! It doesn't say anything about being tagged, having rabies vaccine, being licensed, etc. My dogs are not licensed.

It doesn't say anything about not bringing food, and sadly people do and start dog fights over it. My friend was almost attacked by two dogs who wanted some treats she brought.

And my friend was almost attacked by another dog (hate to even type it, Pit bull) who grabbed onto her dogs Kong frisbee and was growling and trying to bite her when she tried to get it back. The owner could CARE LESS and was actually laughing.

It also doesn't prohibit children under a certain age, which I think it should. I have seen dogs knock over people's children, kids crying cause they "Say" they were bitten or scratched. A lot of people don't supervise their kids at the dog park.

And our dog park has all dogs of all sizes, only one dog park here has two separate areas for small and large dogs, but both areas are very small!

[IceyBlueSibes]

Hmm, well. We tend to avoid the park when there are large crowds. Main reason being they have their own "cliques" and if you are not a regular, you get stared at weird, and they don't want your dog playing with theirs.

Basic rules for our park are to clean up after your dog, no digging or excessive barking, and time is from dusk to dawn.

The downside to dog parks is that you just don't know what type of people are going to be there, which in turn affects how well behaved the dog/s might be.

We went one time where there was two golden retrievers. The male was highly aggressive, especially if any small dog came near the "area" he felt they weren't allowed in. Well, sure enough a small dog got too close and had the little one pinned to the ground screaming. I don't think the dog was hurt, but it took THAT to make the lady leave. Her dog had been attacking all of the other dogs there the entire time we were there, and she finally left after that, but she never ever once disciplined/corrected her dog for behaving that way.

Second time was just where you couldn't help it. Sarge ended up picking out a pitbull that he didn't like. Well, the pit was trying to hump either Sheiba or Denali, I forget. Whoever it was, they really didn't care, but Sarge saw him doing it, and he ran after him in full protect mode. Well, thankfully Sarge listened well, and as soon as I noticed it, I yelled "Hey!!" and he stopped, but we ended up having to leave because Sarge just wasn't getting along with him. He was constantly eyeing him and just itchin' to try and go after him again. The owner was really nice though, and completely understood. His dog was actually becoming very very humpy, and he was actually doing the right thing and giving "time outs" away from the other dogs every time he tried to hump. He'd take him away from the dogs for about 2 minutes. Once he was calm he let him go.

I think the biggest thing was his dog was not neutered, and Sarge hardly ever got along with male dogs that were still intact.

So, all in all, my stories --- you just never know what type of dogs are going to be there, and a lot of times the people who own the unruly dog/s become defensive and never seem to admit to their fault.

I have however, met some very nice people there, and do the same as we do as far as avoiding a big crowd. They like to come when it's quiet and either no, or a few dogs, there.

[Doglover1988]

Dog parks are pretty cool but now that I think about it kind of scary. I think the only one of my dogs that I would trust 100% in a dog park is Lucy. Gabby would probably be good too. I can't help but think though that some dog would come over and start a fight with mine or hurt them.

[Dangels]

In the town that I live close to, we don't actually have a "dog park" however there are always a lot of dogs at the city park. Usually anywhere from 20 - 40 dogs at any given time, so I still call it one lol. They park is large and by the lake. Since it's not actually a dog park, but a city park, there really aren't any rules besides the dogs have to be up to date on shots (at least rabies), be wearing some type of tags, when dogs enter/leave the park they must be leashed, and be on a leash if they aren't well behaved inside of the park.... which are all city rules for any dog, anywhere. Still, there are a lot of people who come to the park and don't watch their dogs at all. They will start talking with other people, and the dogs will run around doing whatever they please. The only issues that i've had at the park would be aggressive dogs. There are a lot of people who I feel shouldn't be bringing their dogs to the park. There is one lady in particular who brings her 2 adult German Shepherds just to socialize them because they are aggressive. I've seen several dogs fights break out because of aggressive dogs. Over the years, several children and a couple adults have also been bitten by dogs in the park. I haven't really had any problems with my dogs there, because my dogs listen very well, and they aren't allowed to run off too far from me. And, as stated above, you never know what type of people will be at the park. I personally like to take my dogs in the very early morning or later at night when I go. The park I go to doesn't have any rules about how early/late people can be there, so when I take my dogs to the park, I try to go when there won't be too many people and other dogs there lol.

[Rivsky]

I find the worst thing about people with their dogs at parks is the fact that very few seem to take responsibility for their dogs' actions. "Effective control" is such a loose term and everyone seems to have a different interpretation of it.

We don't have so much of a problem with people with aggressive dogs thankfully, though there are a few that spring to mind. It's the people who have no control over their "friendly" dogs who stand by the "he/she just wants to play and isn't going to hurt anyone" . They don't seem to realise that if their "friendly" dog is bouncing all over people and/or other dogs they still have the capacity to hurt others especially if they're on the larger side.

Then of course you get dogs that don't get along and while they aren't out and out aggressive about it they also tell each other to back off but some people just refuse to keep an eye on their dogs and make sure they are kept away from each other which would just make the whole experience so much more pleasant for everyone else.

[Jamila]

This is giving me great perspective. I welcome more stories, experiences, and advice.

I think once I move I will scope out the place. See when its busy and what kind of people and dogs go there. Go hang out (without my dogs) and maybe ask people there what their experiences are.

[Sentry]

It is very difficult to be an x-large dog owner at a park. Many people see the size of a mastiff threatening. It doesn't seem to matter that he is accompanied by a 5 lb chihuahua and extreemly friendly. We have ran into problems with the 20 dogs being agressive with him, he takes the abuse because we also have a JRT who rules our house. The small dog owners thought it was funny but it was just plain bulling, they would never have put up with if it was our mastiff and things were reversed. The park can be fun if you find the right dogs paired with the right owners.

[Dangels]

It is very difficult to be an x-large dog owner at a park. Many people see the size of a mastiff threatening. It doesn't seem to matter that he is accompanied by a 5 lb chihuahua and extreemly friendly. We have ran into problems with the 20 dogs being agressive with him, he takes the abuse because we also have a JRT who rules our house. The small dog owners thought it was funny but it was just plain bulling, they would never have put up with if it was our mastiff and things were reversed. The park can be fun if you find the right dogs paired with the right owners.

That's also very true. When I take my Dane boys there, some people seem to be afraid to get too close to my dogs because of their size. My guys are fun loving and carefree. They listen well, stay close to me, and there have been many times where we'll have other dogs come over showing some aggression to them.... they don't pay any attention. But yeah, it can be interesting to bring XL dogs to the park. That's another reason why I rather go when they aren't so many people around. They really enjoy going to the park, though.

[Jamila]

Oh man the bigger the dog the better LOL I ADORE Great Danes (so much that when I was 19 I got a tattoo of one on me) Ive never owned one but when I see people with them I'm always asking if I can love on them. Mastiffs are awesome too....very slobbery LOL

[Punkygirl0101]

That reminds me of a larger than normal lab who goes to the park regularly. She will run and chase after another, and its like she doesn't see people standing there and she runs RIGHT into them. She has almost knocked me down on several occasions. And her owner's excuse is "Oh, she can't hurt anyone.she does that all the time". Its my opinion a dog that runs right into other humans is not a well behaved dog, and CAN definitely hurt someone, especially if she runs into a child.