Dogs should be banned from large parts of public parks

[SpareWheel]

I am sick and tired of going to the park and having some carefree dog owner with the dog off the leash let their blasted mutt scare the hell out of my DD (and ME!). "He's only being friendly" is not an excuse for allowing your dog to run at a child.
And then when we get to somewhere nice to have a picnic, I have to scour the area for dog turds before we can sit down.
I think it's time we acknowledged that although many (maybe even most) dog owners are responsible, the only realistic thing to do is to exclude dogs from large parts of public parks. No apologies to sensible owners of dogs - it's a collective responsibility for all of us (non-dog owners included).

Arent dogs generally banned from childrens play area anyway? Certainly are round our way.

I dont have a dog but I'd be very sad to see dogs banned from any of our local parks. I cycle through 2 everyday and am on nodding terms with most of the owners who are the only other ones around at that hour.

Dp takes dd to a park everyday and he has met and chatted to many lovely dog owners many of whom also have children with them. Dd isnt too keen on dogs either but that is something we dealing with and if there were no dogs in the park then shed never see any which to me would make the problem worse.

Our parks would be even more underused if the dog owners didnt use them and if they dont get used it'll just give the councils an excuse to close them down.

they're banned from our play areas but it doesn't stop some people

[ahem, quick hijack...expat...can i just ask...do you think that ronald reagan was a 'great man?]

Huh?

I was a kid when he was elected. And more interested in getting into trouble than politics during his terms.

He always struck me as a tosspot, though.

Seems it up to the council to designate areas for dog on lead at all times or no go areas:

Road Traffice Act 1988 & Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005

I always have my wee schnauzer on a lead, she'd run off otherwise, and pick up her mess, even if I forget a bag, I'll go home get one and return or use a piece of rubbish that is generally flying about to pick it up.

I'd like a dog park, completely fenced, with waterbowls etc.. where I can let her off the lead to have a good romp around.

Well surely the issue then should be getting the council to put wardens into the park and enforcing fines rather than banning dogs.

I think it also depends on the type of park you are talking about too.

Yes, I think parks could be divided - ie one part fenced off for dogs and their owners and one part for others, particularly those with children who don't want to be worried about not just dogs running up but dog shit. Even if the owners pick it up there are left over bits. I think it is utterly gross and find it wierd that as a nation we seem to put up with it. Going on a country walk is such a pain so often because of all the dog shit that people can't be bothered to pick up . There is so much. I would definitely put dogs in a special dog place only.

Also, the BEACH. May to September. Pah! I'm sure dogs love the beach but they shit there so please just stay away.

I feel strongly about this.

When I came back from Vancouver, I was disgusted at the way dogs can go anywhere in public parks. Over there, there are designated dog areas.

Agree dogs should def never be in childrens play areas. But unless councils are going to provide somewhere for dogs to actually go then I don't think it would be fair to just ban them.
Dogs need to be exercised I doubt many people hav gardens large enough to sufficiently exercise their dog.
I quite like the idea of seperate dog parks and people parks

Oh a dog thread!

Yes - I don't buy the 'He won't bite you' line.
The fact is, the dog has teeth so he COULD bite if he wanted to.

Next time somone says that I will ask if the dog has had all it's teeth removed.
Is it my imagination or are ther lots more big scary dogs around.
Where have all the small yappy type dogs dog? And floppy jumpy dogs?

Now I don't so much mind big scary dogs. The owners tend to be a bit more careful. I got bitten by the leader of a pack of yappy Jack Russells (still have the scars) and last week a bouncy jumpy thing nearly put me in the canal.

I'm a jogger so nuff said. Dogs and joggers don't mix.

You posted SMBK!!!

I know lol - can't help myself Dogs on the loose are a bit of a pet hate of mine.

Oh here we go again, why dont we just ban everything we dont like. Gangs of teenagers, people laying in the sun drinking beer, mums who let their toddlers run up to pet my very friendly(on lead ) dog without asking, etc etc. Dogs are banned from childrens play areas anyway and also from most beaches may to sept. Not all dog owners are irresponsible and as we are also tax payers I dont see why we shouldnt be allowed to walk our dogs in the park.

Even if you do pick up the poo, there's still a remnant of it left on the grass. So there should be a part of every park that's closed off and not for dogs - not just the playground, but a nice bit of grass where children can run around. Our park does have that and yet some of the dog owners, who have the whole rest of the park, still sometimes take their dogs in their

We have a neighbour who lets their dog go around everywhere with no lead all the time - I'm trying to pluck up the courage to say something...

elastamum, the OP didn't say ban dogs from parks, but from parts of them so we can sit on the grass somewhere without worrying about poo. Isn't that fair enough? And no matter how friendly you think your dog is, a) all dogs can turn, and b) even the nicest dogs can get riled or excited by a small child - it's not a great combination.

there not their!

yep...give me the pen... i'll sign

I have no problem with dog free areas as long as people understand that dogs are part of some families too - I often take the dog and kids to the park / woods together. But the OP wants dogs banned from large parts of parks - why should dog walkers be annexed to a tiny corner. Early in the morning round our way the park is full of people with dogs - there is no one else around! Are we really doing that much harm?? You could always have a time zone dogs 7am - 10am No dogs 10am - 3pm if space was such a problem.

Mostly I walk my dog in the country side anyway as I am less likely to encounter intolerant dog hating types - the only people mad enough to walk that far seem to always have a dog in tow anyway

I'm not anti-dog (I promise ) and I'm not saying advocating a blanket ban on dogs in public parks, but realistically you have to have large non-dog areas which operate 24-7 if you want to avoid the poo-problem.

And it would not mean areas are underused. There is a chunk of a local park where I am which is dog-free and it's always got kids running around playing or families picnicking. It's a circular argument and IMO, the only reason parts of the park are underused in the first place is because people don't like to picnic amongst the dog poo and don't like to let their kids run around where there are dogs on the loose.

It's not a solution to say "oh it's the bad dog owners" - if you put up a sign saying "only well-behaved dogs" how many owners of badly-behaved dogs do you think it would deter?

If your family has a dog and you want to have it with you in the park, then go to the doggy area and keep your eyes trained on the ground. If you want to go in the non-dog area, then you can leave it tied-up outside (just as you would if you went into a shop). There's no hardship in that (even for the dog).

I must live somewhere organised then. I take my dog to a local park and yes I let him run around off the lead. He loves children and goes over to say hello to them all. This is a park with a cafe and dog bowls all over the place. There is also a closed off ares with a playground for the children.
I also have small chidren and if they were scared of dogs ( as ds2 was for a long time) then I just wouldn't go over to that park. You would be mad to expect to picnic over there.
We have another park close to that and no dogs are allowed in the grounds what so ever.lovely park for the children.
Guess we are lucky.
Saying that I mostly take mine over to the fields for a run and there are loads of dogs there.

You get to know when you have a dog where are the places to go. I wouldn't let mine off the lead in a crowded obviously childrens park.