Page 9 | to think dogs should be banned from beaches from April to September

DooinMeCleanin · 05/06/2011 06:07

I read earlier, maybe on another thread, about a child who throws his scooter at dogs . I have worked hard to train my previously stray Terrier to accept children and to trust strangers, if someone threw a scooter at him, you'd better pray I am holding his lead tight enough, because if not he might lay at your child's feet and snarl at them

My Terrier is the most 'savage' dog I have ever come across.

Me, otoh, I'd do a hell of a lot more than bleedin' well snarl if your PFB threw his scooter at my dog

LtEveDallas · 05/06/2011 06:16

Ahh dooin, I was thinking the same thing. We have a caravan on the coast in possibly one of the 'chavviest' places known to man. We come here most weekends and every school holiday throughout the year. The beaches are all dog friendly and I have never, not once seen a stray dog poo left on the beach.

There's plenty of horse poo, Tons of seaweed and on one memorable occaison I offered a dog poo bag to a woman whose toddler was busy having one at the waters edge ("no, it's ok, the tide will take it" "no, it really isn't, pick it up")

there are tons of dogs here. Every morning and afternoon we run MuttDog on the beach and we see at least 10 other dogs, rain or shine. We've also never seen a dog bite - but have seen plenty of unleashed children running up to strange dogs (MuttDog included, and she's very nervous around people she doesn't know, so could bite in fear)

I know one person who has been bitten. She works as a rescuer and was checking the suitability of a dog for rescue (ie owners said it was good with children and well behaved - she checks if that is true). She was bitten on the arse but at no time blamed the dog. Just the ignorant abusive bastard that owned a GSD and didn't walk it.

I think the no-dogs brigade do tend to exagerate

LtEveDallas · 05/06/2011 06:19

Aahh bloody iPhone. Last line was meant to be

I think the no-dogs brigade do tend to exagerate, either that or live in some seriously shite (pun intended) places.

Mellowfruitfulness · 05/06/2011 06:34

I once stretched out luxuriously on a sandy beach - only to find I had put my head in a pile of dog poo. Revolting.

But I don't want all dogs banned from all beaches. Just pick up after your pooch. It's not a lot to ask. But since so many people don't, the council are forced to ban dogs from some beaches. Seems like a good compromise imo.

HavingA Maybe - if all dog owners were like you there would be no problems, except that some people don't supervise their kids well enough, I suppose.

It's lovely to see a dog bounding along the beach, horses galloping, etc.

But don't get me started on the irresponsible owners who let their dogs poo on kids' football pitches. Have you ever tried to wipe the muck off the faces and hands of a team of footballers?

HavingAMaybe · 05/06/2011 06:49

Mellowfruitfulness - Yuck! That's truly revolting. I myself fell off my bike when I was a kid and slid along the ground through a pile of crap. Nearly puked.

Even now I still gag sometimes when dealing with His Dogship's offerings :)

Mishy1234 · 05/06/2011 07:09

There has to be a balance between dog and non-dog beaches. Well behaved dogs aren't an issue on any beaches imo. However, they can be a menace where people are trying to have picnics. We had someone's labrador lift his leg over ours. Owners nowhere to be seen of course.

Ormirian · 05/06/2011 07:15

Just wondering about something. Dd had a sickness bug on Thursday. Temp and vomiting all night. Feeling a lot better by Friday afternoon- she ate a bowl of cereal and we all went for a walk. She got about 1 mile before losing her cereal spectacularly in the hedge. We had no puke bags so we left it. As do a lot of Saturday night drunks iME . The world is full of unpleasant substances - bird poo, cow pats, dead badgers, but the most unpleasant and dangerous are those left by the 2-legged animals (pollution, litter, car fumes) why so fucking precious about dogs?

IWouldNotCouldNotWithAGoat · 05/06/2011 08:32

Dooinmecleanin', I am in the habit of shouting after dog owners who fail to notice when their dog has taken a huge steaming dump in a public place. They are invariably apologetic and say they genuinely didn't notice. I am sure they would consider themselves responsible owners which they may well be, by and large. They just need to be more aware.

Although I am impressed by your dog's special pooing place.

Mellowfruitfulness · 05/06/2011 08:32

Well I wouldn't want to lie down in a pile of puke either, Ormirian! Just because dog poo is offensive, it doesn't mean that the other substances you mention aren't. But something can be done about the dog dirt. Your daughter couldn't help being sick (I hope she feels better now). As far as birds and cows are concerned, you might have heard this:

Little birdie flying by
Dropped a message from the sky.
'Oh!' said the farmer, wiping his eye,
Thank God cows can't fly!'

I have also been shat on from a great height as well, btw - but can't see a solution to bird poo, whereas with dogs it's easy. Bin it!

Mellowfruitfulness · 05/06/2011 08:34

IWouldNotCouldNot - when I confronted a woman whose pooch had just pooed on our pitch, she told me she was sorry, but he had diarrhoea, and she couldn't pick it up!

IWouldNotCouldNotWithAGoat · 05/06/2011 08:35

Can I just say that I do my absolute utmost to NOT instill a fear of dogs in my kids. But having an Alsatian leap at your face can be a terrifying experience when you are two feet tall, whether your parents like dogs or not.

Mellowfruitfulness · 05/06/2011 08:37

Oh, and while we're on the subject, I do the poo patrol on my son's pitch. I have found as many as 12 different piles on one pitch. I have seen people watching me pick it up while they are walking their dogs - and rather than dealing with it themselves, leaving it there for me to collect ...

There is clearly a problem with irresponsible dog owners - no doubt about it - but dogs are lovely and shouldn't be blamed, imo.

bluebobbin · 05/06/2011 08:41

"Why so precious about dogs" - because they can have virus in their poo which can make children go blind.

I went to a beach by PIL's house in April this year. Me and DCs barefoot on beach, just about to go for a paddle in the sea on a sunny day. Getting near water. Spot dog shit on beach. Near to sea so few more waves will chuck it everywhere and potentially on us. Just so filthy, disgusting and potentially dangerous. We left. The person who allowed their dog to do that should be so ashamed of themselves.

PS I love dogs. A lot.

And to those who are talking about children who are afraid of dogs: my 5yo DS has mild ASD and physically shakes when he sees dogs. My mum used to have a dog, but she died last year and a friend still has a dog. DS loved and adored both these dogs, but he is scared of ones he doesn't know. So don't be judging everyone with a terrified child.

sunshineandbooks · 05/06/2011 08:50

I can see both sides of the argument on this. I have two small DC and a dog.

Last year I was on holiday in Cornwall and took the DC and the dog to a beach, only to find that the beach would not allow dogs. Cue screaming, disappointed DC because we had to get back in the car and drive away (was far too hot to leave dog in car). We eventually managed to find a more remote beach that didn't have such restrictions.

It annoys me immensely, but I see that it is because there are some selfish dog owners who don't clear up after their dogs or control them properly - both of which are unacceptable and were bound to have consequences, especially after the mass hysteria peddled in newspapers about toxoplasmosis etc (which is actually extremely rare). Sadly, the sort of dog owners who don't clear up after their dogs are also the sort that probably don't bother to regularly worm their dogs, which means that their dog poo probablyis contaminated.

I think the fairest solution is to keep some beaches dog-friendly while others are dog-free. As a dog owner I much prefer a less crowded beach where I can let my dog off anyway.

Jacanne · 05/06/2011 09:11

Both of my children have been chased by over-excited dogs who were miles down the beach from their rather ineffectually shouting owners. I know that the dogs are playing but my DC are frightened and don't like being chased by them - this has happened in parks too. I think that if you are a dog owner and you take your dog to a place where there are lots of children at a busy time then you should keep your dog on a lead. Perhaps beaches should be out of bounds during busy times of the day rather than the summer months - after all there aren't many children around before 10am and probably after about 4pm.

Jacanne · 05/06/2011 09:14

With regards to parents instilling a fear of dogs into their children - well I don't need to do that, as mentioned they have both been chased by barking, jumping dogs and one of them has been knocked over twice by a dog off its lead.

bigbuttons · 05/06/2011 09:18

In Brighton the main tourist beaches are non go zones for dogs between may and Sept. However I was on one beach a couple of days ago with the kids and 2 separate people came along with dogs, one on a lead, another leaping all over people's towels. There are very clear signs saying NO DOGS. These people are twats of the highest order IMO. Their dogs should be taken off them.

insertcleverusernamehere · 05/06/2011 09:22

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Jojocat · 05/06/2011 09:47

YANBU - We spent a week in north devon last summer and none of the beaches we visited were dog free. People left poo in plastic bags in rock pools etc and dogs came running up to us.

I am also fed up with finding dog poo left on every alley way in our town. It would be nice to go for a walk and look at the views rather than at ones feet to avoid walking in dog poo.

mumzy · 05/06/2011 09:50

Yes to a dog ban on beaches during the summer months or at least dog wardens patrolling beaches and fining irresponsible owners. Last year we were on Studland bay in Dorset a family with a dog let it of the lead as soon as they got to the beach whereby the dog promptly rushed into the sea and did a geat big shit, it was revolting. All around were children playing in the water and on the sand. There were also signs saying all dogs should be kept on leads whilst on the beach which was promptly ignored by 80% of dog owners and whose dogs ran around approaching random children. Do dog owners realise that a dog the size of a labrador to a 5 yr old is the size of a lion to an adult. I know dog owners think of their dogs as a member of the family,but would you let one of your family members shit everywhere and scare children and not take action?

Threelittleducks · 05/06/2011 10:05

Reeediculous idea.

I'm not even going to read this thread, that title is daft.

[walks off grumbling about dafties who use the beach once in a blue moon only whenit's sunny and dogs who take great joy in it every day...]

JoanofArgos · 05/06/2011 10:30

It's not the parents telling their children to be afraid of dogs - it's a natural response to be afraid of something which is bigger than you, barking in your frightened face and showing it's big sharp teeth, while its owner laughs at you for jumping or seeming afraid.

My daughter loved dogs until the age of three, when she was walking along holding my hand ON A PAVEMENT, IN THE TOWN, and a big bastard dog came up and jumped at her, barked repeatedly in her face, while its owners sauntered along 100 yards behind. When they finally bothered to catch up, they laughed a little bit and told it to come on. Pretty unpleasant when you're only small.

Much as I don't get the point of them, I see that some people do, and some dogs are nice.... but surely it wouldn't be too awful just to keep them on leads when there are humans around?

MilaMae · 05/06/2011 10:33

We live in Devon and practically live on Devon and Cornwalls's beaches,moors(don't get me started on dogs rampaging through the moors worrying sheep/ponies etc),woods.... thanks.

I didn't make my dc scared of dogs either thanks.My son's bite and the continual hassle of dogs leaping,shitting,licking,chasing etc did that all by themselves.

Seems in St Ives campaigning for action is already happening,judging by the amount of fed up parents near me I wouldn't be surprised if it spread.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cornwall-B33331795

MilaMae · 05/06/2011 10:38

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cornwall-13331795

I have to say if a group of drunken teenagers or middle aged men(or any other animal) did half that dogs do on beaches to young children ie leap over,slobber,sniff,chase,piss over toys there would be outrage.

For some reason dog owners see dogs as gilded super beings,above the law or any criticism.

HavingAMaybe · 05/06/2011 10:43

If your child gets knocked over by another, bigger child, do they then become scared of all other children?

I don't mean to be inflammatory, but the vast majority of dogs and their owners don't want to piss you off.