Dog parks

[Gemini]

Do any of you have any of these in your area?
I had never even heard of them, until I saw our local one.It is in the next village, which actually joins onto our village now both have grown!
It is behind the children's play park. It is fenced all around, with lots of space, grass, trees some seats for owners to take a rest, and of course doggy bins. It is a lovely idea, and I enjoy seeing the dogs having fun in there when I am in the park with my GC.

[Clover]

There don’t seem to be any round here Gem but they seem like a really good idea especially if you are not lucky enough to have open countryside or beaches nearby.(as we do )

[Enfys]

We got one near us and DD used to take Dexter there when he was a pup. A nice easy safe environment for them to run around, he loved it.

[Oma]

We have a couple but about 15 mins away by car, They are very popular and a great idea

[Daisy]

They are a great idea - until you get dogs running loose and out of control, or owners who don't care what their dogs are doing while they chat on their phones! Sorry, I hope that doesn't sound cynical, but you read such a lot on dog forums etc about dogs who've been frightened or worse attacked by out of control dogs. Most of them play really happily and that's wonderful, and part of the enjoyment owners get from having a dog. But when it goes wrong it's awful. I think one member here had a bad experience with a dog out of control recently and it was scary.

I've taken Eva into fenced dog areas, especially on camp sites, and it's been great, but I'm conscious of other dogs all the time and keep her on a long lead.

Near us (and Enfys) there is a privately owned dog park where you can book it by the hour so yours is the only dog(s) there. It even has agility equipment, drinking water laid on, 6' fencing all round and double gates. The only trouble is, it's getting so popular you have to book ages in advance! We're incredibly lucky to have the use of a friend's paddock for Eva so we can exercise her on her own, or sometimes with Cooper or Bailey. It's the only time we can safely let her off lead.

[Enfys]

Daisy, there was one dog owner who had no control over their dog and if they were there DD wouldn’t let Dexter in. It’s a shame there’s always one who spoil it for others but I guess it was the only place they could let their dog off the lead. He wasn’t fierce or anything but just out of control. Now It’s the beach or down by the river, being a spaniel he loves the water. Of course the beach is out of bounds in some places which is fine, so it’s mainly the river in the summer.

[Gemini]

Reading on our village FB page, it seems there are a couple of selfish owners who use it, and others say the whole feel of the place changes when they are there with their dogs.
What a pity. I think they need bouncers!

[Daisy]

Enfys - your DD was very sensible to protect Dexter. Eva wouldn't hurt a fly, but when she's playing with another dog she goes deaf, blind and stupid to us calling her. She is slowly improving, but you have to be sure that the dog she's playing with is as happy about it as she is. I know we're lucky to have somewhere where we can safely let her run free, but if you know your dog is unreliable you should put it back on the lead if other dogs come into the dog park. We need a kind of Highway Code for dog parks - or as Gem suggests - a bouncer!

[Shemadee]

The breeder we bought our retriever from wouldn’t have allowed us to buy him if we didn’t have a reasonable size garden and ensure he got an hours free run every day. He used to have a great time in a nearby field but as always seems to be the case, there was one dog owner who would consistently lie and tell people her dog had never been aggressive before. He went for our dog on three occasions and most other owners had the same story to tell. A bit like some parents who never discipline their children and are dismayed when they end up in serious trouble.

[Nana]

I don't think there are any round here. Reading your posts I would have mixed feelings about using one now. The fact is tho that generally dogs are sociable creatures. Our dog loves to play with his dog friends when they meet up on his walks.

Oma I wish someone would set up a doggie daycare here like the one your big gentle giant goes to. I think it's a great idea.

[Gemini]

I suppose as a non dog owner I just see it from my point of view which is it keeps dogs away from the children's area, and the dogs have a good time!
I would have mixed feeling too as a dog owner, if there were aggressive dogs and selfish owners using it.
Oma's Granddog's Doggie Daycare sounds wonderful

[Daisy]

After being a bit grumpy about dog parks earlier in this thread, we used one of the dog walk fields at the campsite last week. It was reasonably well fenced, although I know Eva could have jumped it if she'd really wanted to. Last time we went there in October, I wouldn't have risked letting her off, but this time we did provided there were no other dogs in there. We walked and played with her, keeping one eye on the entrance so we could slip her back on the lead if another dog arrived.

But one morning I was in there with Eva firmly on the lead and as far away from the entrance as I could get and a woman let her very young dog come right up to Eva. They wagged tails, sniffed noses and then the puppy went round to Eva's tail for a good 'hello' sniff. Eva had been about to squat down for a pooh and she wasn't impressed at all. One bark from her was enough to wake the dozy owner up and call her puppy off! Why would you put your dog at risk of running up to a dog was was clearly on a lead attached in two places to a harness.

[Plantaholic]

There are too many irresponsible dog owners Daisy.

[Daisy]

Plant, I agree, and often they don't seem to realise they could be putting their own dog at risk. Eva isn't aggressive, but she can be very excitable, and I always worry she could frighten another dog by being boisterous.

[Glammanana]

When we lived abroad the local council had doggy loo's set up in every park and that was more than 10yrs ago,we could always take Mr Ming our Pekinese in for a run about before we carried on to work for the day then again at lunch time on our way home for siesta time,I have not seen any near where we live now and its such a good idea.