To just let my dog off anyway

[LittleYellowIceCream]

Live on a small rural street where we are all quite close with neighbours.

At the end of the street is a farm, they don't use one of the fields closest to the road so a long long time ago they turned it into a 'dog walking' field for the people on the street (and whoever really).

There is a public footpath through the field which is clearly marked and runs up the side near the wall and then through the other fields. You have to enter this field from the road and there is a big sign which says 'X STREET DOG WALKING FIELD' and a message about picking up after them etc...

It's nice, the dogs often play on there together and we all have a chat if we happen to be on at the same time etc...

However since this warm weather I've seen about 3/4 families all sat down on the field on blankets having picnics. Not with their own dogs, just them.

It means none of us feel we can let our dogs off to run around and play.

One neighbour did point out the sign and said it may not be the best place for a picnic but was ignored.

WIBU to just let my dog off his lead anyway? He does have good recall but I obviously can't guarantee his frisbee isn't going to land in someone's 'picnic area' whilst we play fetch!

There's not many places dogs can just have a run off lead round here that are closed off and safe. There is a park where people can have picnics literally 5 minutes away!

Its really annoying me. I don't take him to the park because I don't want to get in people's way when they are trying to sit/eat/kids playing etc.. this is the one area that is supposed to be for dogs to run about off lead and I feel like I can't even let him off here now either.

[Hopeisnotastrategy]

Big friendly smile as you go in, confident voice and say, “Hello, that looks like fun! Just to check you know, this is the dog walking field, and I will be letting my dog off in a moment or two. He’s very friendly, but he does like a picnic so he may come over to say hello. Have a good day!”

Then go over to the other side of the field, maybe give it a moment or two if they start putting the food away etc and then let him off, play with the frisbee and so on.

If they have a problem after that then they’re idiots, but most people are ok if you talk to them (and an awful lot people like dogs, whatever you read on here. 😊)

[Mlou32]

Maybe they aren't bothered by dogs hence why they've decided to take the risk? If I was scared of dogs then I wouldn't be setting foot in a dog walking field. So maybe they are fine with dogs running around them. Why anyone would choose to picnic in a field designated for dogs shitting in though, I have no idea!

As an aside...unless your dog has good recall and doesn't jump all over folk, he probably shouldn't be off lead in public at all.

[SoupDragon]

Does not being bothered by dogs allow you to trespass?

[SoupDragon]

As an aside...unless your dog has good recall and doesn't jump all over folk, he probably shouldn't be off lead in public at all.

This isn't in public, it is a private field.

[Mlou32]

@soupdragon yes I'm aware of that however my point is that if the dog doesn't have good recall then he could run off. Dogs aren't aware of boundary lines of areas and where they can or can't go over. It has happened with my dog; walking him through a field and off he took! It took us ages to find him, he decided to run off and was found in someone's garden. Our fault, we shouldn't have had him off lead and we didn't make that mistake again without upping our training!

[eggandonion]

Assuming it is a fenced in field, not a woodland glade, that shouldn't be a problem. As long as the dog is OK with humans walking their dogs, and doesn't attack other dogs, why shouldn't s/he be off lead?

[ravenmum]

Once had our Jack Russell on a beach off lead and some horses galloped past. She forgot her usual decent recall and vanished into the distant horizon, out of sight. Probably went a mile before giving up and reappearing. (I love the idea of me running in front of her, as fast as the horses!)

Seriously, picnics = chocolate at ground level = visit to the vet.

[Figgygal]

Have you mentioned it on the WhatsApp yet I’d be interested to see what the owner of the field says. They have given permission for people to exercise the dogs the people who live in that street it’s not a free for all for every local Tom Dick and Harry to come and plonk their arses down with their sausage rolls so yeah I’d let my dog off

[nicky7654]

Carry on letting your dog run freely as you have been. I walk mine around a farmers field and if idiots think it's ok to picnic there then my dogs will go and say hello. Yours in a dog walking g area not a picnic area.

[ittakes2]

To be honest I am not sure why you are asking - it’s a sign dog walking field. The only thing I would do if someone is picnicking is say this is a dog walking field for this street as per the sign. Happy for you to continue picnicking but it’s at your own risk. In fact, why not add that to the sign ‘picnic at your own risk!’

[Nottherealslimshady]

I came to say you're being unreasonable but actually, if theres a sign saying it's a dog walking field at the entrance then they're being unreasonable to have a picnic there.

[Amatteroftime]

I had this issue recently, OP. Ddog has good recall and leaves things alone (food) when asked. But I finally got sick of lockdown flouters doing the same thing (picnic in private dog walking field, signposted as such), we had been creeping around them for several weeks. So I let him off. He went over to say hi - normally I wouldn't let him but I thought fuck it. He came away when asked, they moved on.

[TheShoesa]

The general public unfortunately seem to think that any land adjacent to a public footpath is public land, but it isn't.

The public absolutely do have a right to walk the path, but that doesn't extend to picnics by the side of it. In the OPs case, the landowner has given permission to the residents of the street to use the field for the purpose of exercising their dogs off lead. That doesn't mean that every Tom, Dick and Harry can decide that this means the land through which the footpath runs is a public space to be used however they please.

LittleYellowIceCream would you feel comfortable pointing out that they are on private land?

(Disclaimer - I live on a farm and have lost count of the number of times I have seen people wandering all over everywhere and when I point out that they are nowhere the PUBLIC FOOTPATH, some say 'Oh, I know, but I'm not doing any harm!' or 'I've seen other people do it so I thought it must be okay'. We once woke up to find that a tent had been pitched next to a footpath - why would anyone do that?)

[pigsDOfly]

Very puzzled by some of the responses on here.

The owner of the land has designated it a dog walking field, therefore it's a dog walking field and dogs are allowed to be in it off lead regardless of what other people are doing.

If someone, who doesn't want a dog near their picnic, sees a sign at the entrance to a field saying 'dog walking field' then decides to have a picnic in that field they can't complain if a dog runs up to their picnic.

If they saw a field with a great big bull in it, would they think it okay to enter the field, sit down and have a picnic with the bull for company?

[Cherrysoup]

One time, a bloke sat in the field with his guitar and some groupies friends. He then complained that the horses disturbed him. Yes, it was a horse field. Then someone set up a tent next field over-also a horse field. People are sometimes very entitled!

[lynzpynz]

I fail to see how you could possibly be in any way at fault by letting your dog off lead in a signposted, private, land-belonging-to-your-street, designated dog-walking field!

If people choose to picnic there they have no comeback if its subsequently crashed by the inevitable dogs!

I don't like dogs and even I think YANBU!