Dog ban outside school

[stivesholiday]

Recently our primary school has closed its gates to cars as our new head teacher wants to encourage as many of us to walk to school as possible.

Additionally, the new head teacher has changed the drop off and pick up rules, so that parents don't need to wait in the playground, they can do a quick wave goodbye and kiss in the morning. At the end of the day, as long as the teacher sees the parent waiting, the child can walk out of school.

Concurrently, there are a lot of people since the New Year that have gotten dogs. These factors combined mean that many more dogs are being walked to school as dog owning parents realise that if they walk the 20 mins to school and back twice a day, that it a fair chunk of their dog walking done; quite handy.

There are now around 15 dogs that are in the school area before and after school. They are not allowed in the playground, but the parents don't need to go in there anyway. So there are lots of dog owning parents waiting on the footpath behind the metal fence outside of school.

Some parents have complained that there are too many dogs at the school gate area and it is frightening for their children who are scared of dogs. These are not aggressive dogs, but many are puppies so are bouncy and they all want to play with each other.

I can see the perspective of the parents with small children that feel scared. They have put a petition together to ask the head to ban dogs from outside the school.

Am I being unreasonable to think that as long as the dogs are not in the school grounds, are not acting aggressively, are on a lead/under control, there is nothing that these parents can do, no matter what the petition?

I put my hands up to owning an 8 month old puppy. One mother asked me via Facebook to not walk my dog to and from school and I said no because I'm doing nothing wrong. I likened it to not wanting a strangers car parked outside your house but you can do nothing about it if they have paid their road tax.

A child's new puppy was carried into school last week at ds's school.

The head has no jurisdiction on the public pavement.

Ravealall that is exactly the issue here. There was a large paved area within the grounds but not in the playground, where people tied their dogs up. However, there were so many dogs that other parents complained and said it was "too much". However, they didn't think it through. I remember one woman who was cock-a-hoop that she had "won" in getting dogs banned from anywhere on the school grounds.

However, that said same woman is now complaining like crazy that there is a dog infested pathway outside school. She is saying her child is hysterical going in to school each day because of the dogs she has to pass. But I can't see how they can stop dog owners from standing on a public pavement outside the school.

Tiggytape, the head changed the drop off and pick up rules because the car park had been closed. The belief being that if there was nowhere to park, then parents needed the flexibility of a quick drop off as there was nowhere to park.

yet another dog owner who cannot understand that not everyone likes the bloody things that shit everywhere

That does seem a lot of dogs. You're right though, there's bugger all the HT can do about it.

I wouldn't take my dog purely because he shits wherever he goes. Even if he's just had a walk. If he's going somewhere else, he'll squeeze one out. I assume he's got into the habit of marking his scent everywhere but my god is it annoying. Everywhere I take him I have to pick up his shit.

I detest dogs. I'm not scared if them, just find then disgusting. Why should I have to walk through a crowd of them to get into school?

Bit daft imo.

The lollipop lady at dd's primary ran a small holding, lovely lady she was. Every now and then you'd find a goat, sheep, donkey, miniature pony or even a cow tied to the railings outside the school gates. The excited screams of the kids was always wonderful.
Of course at Christmas the donkey would come draped in tinsel.

The school itself was on the edge of a common and many parents, myself included would walk their dogs over there before bell. The collection of animals outside school some evenings was a sight to see.

I think the head has unrealistic expectations of what she can control outside school gate.She should perhaps be thankful that kids are walking and the dogs are encouraging them to do that.

We had a number of dogs right outside the gate on a regular basis. One of them attacked a child, completely unprovoked, so all dog owners were asked to keep away from the gate. They are all creeping back again.

I am torn on this. I am not unaware that it is very difficult to walk past lots of dogs if you have a fear of them. But the same dog owners (many more in fact) are walking their dogs along pavements and past the same fearful children, every day.

I just feel that it is going crazy to put rule after rule after rule. I was lambasted on facebook for saying "no I won't leave my dog at home, I will walk it to school and back and wait the 3 minutes outside of school for my child to walk in/come out as it is my legal right".

As a parent of 2 extremely dog wary children (they have a dog in their life that they love, but don't extend that to all dogs, quite rightly) I couldn't care less if you're there, but with 2 caveats:

1. You teach your dog some manners. It doesn't get to shout or jump near my kids because that scares them.
2. If it shits, you clean the shit up and take it away, so I don't end up having to clean it off DS1's shoes or DS2's wheelchair/buggy wheels.

I suppose they could insist parents come in and collect the kids.

But 15 tied up dogs is probably worse than 15 dogs with their owners. Our village school is always moaning at parents who tie dogs to trees by the gate. But they can't stop them, not their trees.

At dd's old primary school it was ponies tied to the railings not dogs.

But if you're scared of dogs and someone's walking one towards you, you can cross the road or grin and bear it because it's just one dog. To be faced with 15 when all you want to do is leave the bloody school grounds - well, it's hard. It's not the same.

Who is to say who has a greater right? The parent with a fearful child, the person who doesn't like dogs, the person who doesn't like lots of dogs, or the dog owner who isn't actually doing anything wrong by walking their dog to school on public land?

Everyone will have their opinion on who's right over rules the other, but as it stands I'm not asking anyone to like my dog, stroke my dog or even look at my dog. I just want to combine walking my dog whilst I collect my child which means I need stand on the pavement outside of school about 5 foot away from the school gate.

Viva - I'm amazed I've not seen more kids collected form school by pony, here. IIRC, you live near me, or am I mixing you up with something else?

One of my earliest memories, living here, is someone buying special shampoo, at the chemist, for a horse with sensitive skin.

Horse shit is slightly more pleasant, despite the volume, mind.

Why not just not impose your dogs on people who dont like them?

Something? Someone! [sorry]

I have a DS who is scared of dogs.I have no trouble getting him to go to school every day.I can tell you I would if I had to walk him past 15 dogs and the dogs he sees walking around yes he tries to snuggle into me, watches the dog intently incase he goes to attack him.

Sick of dogs, full stop. Sick of the arrogance that they can do no wrong, sick of the shit everywhere, and sick of people thinking that they can just inflict their pets on people that don't want to come into contact with them. Time for strict licensing.

Ds is a bit scared of dogs.

When he was a toddler we had a neighbour with big scary dogs that he deliberative trained to be aggressive. One day one dog got out while I was out with the kids and gave us all a fright.

He would be over this by now if it wasn't for the bloody 'it's ok, he is only being friendly' brigade who let their dogs come and sniff/lick/bounce about/jump up on him. Over the years he has repeatedly gotten to the stage where he would notice and keep an eye on but not be stressed about a dog being there. Then we have met one of these owners and their beloved dog and then it's straight back to having a flappy, shrieking child when we next encounter a dog.

If I was a dog owner in this situation I would stand far back with the dog on a very short lead. Then if you do encounter a flappy shrieking child you have far more control over the situation. And it's far less likely to happen.

I wouldn't fancy walking down an enclosed alleyway lined with lively dogs, at all. It's different to passing one on the street. If the space is only 4 feet wide and lined with dogs on each side I think that would be uncomfortable for many people even those without a particular fear.

50Bales - I'm not imposing my dogs on anyone. I am standing on a public footpath outside of school. I am not asking anyone to pet my dog, they just need to walk past it, just like they walk past any other dog on their walk to school. As we are in a very rural area, there are lots of dogs around. The school were pressured to implement rules but didn't think of the consequences.

Starlight, would tell those same dog owners not to be there though? Even if they had all legal right to be there?

My dog doesn't do anything wrong.
He doesn't shit everywhere and I clean it up when he does shit. Every time.
I don't inflict him on anyone. I walk him to the school gate and stand a good ten feet back. People don't have to pass him.
He's on a lead, behaving himself.

Op are there dogs on each side, is it 4 feet wide, are the dogs within reach of the people walking through?

If that is the case it sounds really intimidating to me.

hot cross
my lovely little dog doesn't shit everywhere