People walking cats and rabbits on leads in parks

[AvocadosBeforeMortgages]

Utter fools. Do they not like their pets?

I've come across this at least 4 times now - people (all different!) walking cats and, in one case, a rabbit, on a lead.

In all cases, these are parks where dogs are allowed off lead and the vast majority are off lead. Including everything from ex-racing greyhounds to terriers.

I spoke to rabbit woman and pointed out the dangers. She said she'd just pick the rabbit up - while seemingly failing to account for the fact greyhounds can travel at 40mph and jump higher than she could possibly lift the rabbit.

Yesterday I saw this on-lead cat before my own dog did (a small miracle - from a distance I thought it was a puppy), and warned them my dog wasn't cat friendly. They then decided to stop sitting down in the park and instead FOLLOW US through the park.

Presumably when it goes wrong they'll be whining that the dog was out of control - but presumably they'd also be whining if they wandered out blindfolded onto a 70mph road and got run over. It's asking for trouble.

I'm not convinced cats or rabbits enjoy being walked - and surely the much safer / more pragmatic option would be to walk them somewhere where dogs aren't allowed to be off lead?

Let's pray this doesn't catch on as a trend

Despite having a dog I'm inclined to think that setting up some fenced dog areas in parks for unleashed dogs and then insisting dogs are leashed in all other public spaces (same as the USA) would be a good way to go
No, that would be absolutely horrendous.
Those parks are often filled with very overexcited, badly socialised dogs with no manners, they are a fight waiting to happen.

For a dog like mine, that ignores other dogs (and people) and doesn’t want to socialise with the vast majority of dogs that approach her her stress levels would be through the roof.

She’d never be able to go off lead and she is a breed that needs ample exercise

OP you sound really entitled. Maybe think for a moment and understand that parks aren't specifically for dogs but nearby residents who also pay for it. I'm not a dog owner and it never occurred to me that parks may be known dog playgrounds. That's not how I perceive my neighbourhood.

I recently got a cat and he will be an indoor cat unless I take him out on a leash.

You don't compare a park with a road. That is utterly stupid.

For a dog like mine, that ignores other dogs (and people) and doesn’t want to socialise with the vast majority of dogs that approach her her stress levels would be through the roof.

She’d never be able to go off lead and she is a breed that needs ample exercise

frankly, if you can't give your pet what it needs to thrive, then you shouldn't keep that pet.
that goes for any pet. dogs as well as cats, rabbits, iguanas, snails...

@redcandlelight

For a dog like mine, that ignores other dogs (and people) and doesn’t want to socialise with the vast majority of dogs that approach her her stress levels would be through the roof.

She’d never be able to go off lead and she is a breed that needs ample exercise

frankly, if you can't give your pet what it needs to thrive, then you shouldn't keep that pet.
that goes for any pet. dogs as well as cats, rabbits, iguanas, snails...

The PP got their dog (and continues to keep their dog) at a time when dog parks have thankfully not yet reached these shores.

You can't move the goalposts and then tell people that they shouldn't be keeping that pet.

@Twatalert

OP you sound really entitled. Maybe think for a moment and understand that parks aren't specifically for dogs but nearby residents who also pay for it. I'm not a dog owner and it never occurred to me that parks may be known dog playgrounds. That's not how I perceive my neighbourhood.

I recently got a cat and he will be an indoor cat unless I take him out on a leash.

You don't compare a park with a road. That is utterly stupid.

You didn't bother to read the thread did you?

frankly, if you can't give your pet what it needs to thrive, then you shouldn't keep that pet.
that goes for any pet. dogs as well as cats, rabbits, iguanas, snails...
Taking my own dog out of it for a minute, many dog trainers in America hate dog parks and advise owners to never take their dog to one and campaign against them.
Because lots of strange dogs in a relatively small environment actually, for a lot of dogs, is really stressful.
Many of the dogs in dog parks are of the ‘don’t worry he’s friendly!’ brigade meaning they are the badly socialised, overexcited sort that rush other dogs, jump all over them and ignore their requests to stop.
Which is one of the reasons why fights are so common in dog parks.

My own dog isn’t at all unusual in not liking other dogs.

At the time when I bought her and currently, dog parks are, fortunately, not a thing and there is no law stating I cannot have her off lead unless she is near a road.
The law simply states she has to be ‘under control’
She doesn’t approach people, she doesn’t approach other dogs and recalls.
So I have no doubt she is ‘under control’

When the law allows me to buy any dog breed that isn’t banned, doesn’t require me to have said dog leashed unless by a road, requires me to make sure my dog is under control and I have a dog that is walked regularly, that doesn’t approach people/dogs and recalls therefore is ‘under control’, that has never shown any aggression to people whatsoever so cannot ‘make people think they will hurt you’ or whatever the quote is and barely barks so doesn’t come under noise nuisance I’m intrigued as to how I have bought a dog whose ‘needs to thrive’ I apparently cannot meet..?

Interesting that people are opposed to dog parks as they are stressful for dogs with lots of badly socialised dogs jumping over eachother.
I would argue that this is also a description of many parks in the UK. I’ve been to parks where there are lots of out of control dogs running around together in fairly small fields and I agree that it’s stressful for a lot of dogs.

At least the American way of separating of separating on and off leash areas gives people that don’t like dogs a space to enjoy where they won’t be bothered by off leash dogs. And allows reactive on lead dogs to enjoy the park too. If you know your dog is stressed by being surrounded by off lead dogs it would be easy to avoid the off lead area, whereas it’s almost impossible to avoid off lead/over friendly dogs in many UK parks. Also, in off leash dog parks all dogs are off lead which reduces the chance of a fight whereas if you have a dog that needs to be on lead in the UK you often have no choice but to walk through areas with out of control dogs. In many areas there is just nowhere to walk a dog that you won’t run into off lead and often out of control dogs (apart from roads which lots of dogs don’t enjoy/may even be reactive to cars)

@Veterinari
Could certainly stress your cat, cause limb entanglement in the lead and possible fractures or joint dislocations, or result in spinal trauma if the cat tried to dart away. At the very least it would be unpleasant.

This, in direct reply to me, along with many other references to the health and welfare of cats (and rabbits) were made without reference to the OP.
I'm glad you appreciate that in some cases the risks you have mentioned are not relevant. I would say they are grossly overstated.

I saw a child walking a cat in or local park a couple of weeks ago. The cat was stressed and anxious, and it looked absolutely ridiculous.

Just to clarify, the cat didn’t look ridiculous. The idiots walking the cat looked ridiculous

[quote MiddlesexGirl]@Veterinari
Could certainly stress your cat, cause limb entanglement in the lead and possible fractures or joint dislocations, or result in spinal trauma if the cat tried to dart away. At the very least it would be unpleasant.

This, in direct reply to me, along with many other references to the health and welfare of cats (and rabbits) were made without reference to the OP.
I'm glad you appreciate that in some cases the risks you have mentioned are not relevant. I would say they are grossly overstated.[/quote]
That's certainly a situation that could occur in the environment the OP describes.

Why do you think it couldn't?

Also, did you miss the part where I linked to the good walking guidelines? Of course there are much safer ways of walking your cat than what the OP describes, but that and your personal cat walking, isn't what this thread is focussed on, no matter how many times you try and use your personal experience to generalise.

It isn’t even just dogs.
People to love blame dogs for all societies’ ills, especially on a topic like this, banging on about entitlement and dogs ruling the park etc.
But it’s not just dogs that are the problem.
It’s traffic and bikes and scooters and people playing ball and all sorts of other extremely scary (to a rabbit and/or cat) things aswell.

It is just so, so selfish and irresponsible.
No thought to the welfare of the actual animal involved.

I'm late to this thread, and I have read it all, but I'm flummoxed that someone would walk a rabbit on a lead.

Surely a mixture of common sense and consideration would solve this. Don't put a harness on a rabbit, only put one on a cat if it really can't roam, e.g. FIV and then think about where you're taking it and if you let your dog off lead in a park make sure it's trained enough to not jump up at people and steal their picnic.

It's about give and take. I have walked several ferrets (who really do need a lot of stimulation and exercise outside a cage) but I'd never take them to a park! They're not rabbits or cats but they're certainly not an animal people are used to seeing on a lead on a regular basis. I took them to the woods near the river where it's much quieter and I'd hardly expect a dog owner to be on the look out for a ferret. Every single time any potential meeting of dog and ferret was easily averted by me being vigilant and calling out to any dog owners that I had ferrets, the owner having control of their dog (on or off lead) and me picking up the ferrets if I sensed any danger. It shouldn't be about one species trumping another but careful thought about how best to meet your own pet's needs whilst considering the impact on another.

You mean you actually picked up your ferret and it was okay?? ??? It wasn’t mauled to death? Wow, now there’s a thing. Be careful what you post because some people on here think that’s a ridiculous concept.

You mean you actually picked up your ferret and it was okay?? ??? It wasn’t mauled to death? Wow, now there’s a thing. hmm Be careful what you post because some people on here think that’s a ridiculous concept
The ferret may not have been so calm had a dog actually run up and starting jumping at it.
Frightened animals bite and scratch, just because it’s a ferret doesn’t mean it can’t cause nasty injuries if it feels panicked and unable to get away.

It’s quite common in a park in London near where I used to live.

Tbh, I do think if a dog can’t be trusted not to attack and kill a small animal it should be on a lead. Squirrels, wild rabbits, ducks and other birds are all in parks (and rats - might not be a fan but don’t really want to see one attacked and killed on a family day out!)

I have an elderly cat who is now housebound, but initially he was an outdoor cat. Turns out he can’t climb properly due to a leg issue but insisted on trying and getting lost/stuck in other people’s gardens. Rather than make him a house cat, when I first got him I walked him in my garden on a leash for 20 min twice a day to make sure he couldn’t sneak off. He was very happy with this and now he stays in as he’s too infirm.

I have had both dogs and cats, and I agree dogs should be walked off lead where it is responsible to do so and the individual dog needs it; some dogs are much better off lead. Some dogs need to be kept on a lead. But regardless, walking a cat or a rabbit in public is massively irresponsible. I’d never take mine to a park. Just because I could, doesn’t mean I should. It wouldn’t be safe or fair on him.

I notice all the instagram posts where people take their cats on wonderful walks are videos of empty beaches, empty trails and isolated mountain paths. Not public parks with loads of people and dogs. I think social media is encouraging people to do things that look cute rather than use common sense. If you can’t let your cat out safely, keep it indoors.

The problem is many dog owners think they are above all rules and let their dogs off-lead whether it’s an off-lead area or not. This makes it difficult for small animals that do enjoy a walk to be kept safe yet these dog-owners seem to think their rights trump all others. That’s the problem, not the small animal owners!

One of my kids used to do a pet minding/dog walking service and like the poster above dealt with a family of ferrets who liked to go for a walk on a harness/lead. It was a nightmare for them due to entitled dog owners even though they only picked areas where dogs were meant to be on lead. It resulted in them having to essentially lose $$ as they would bring them back to our house to walk in the yard (no dogs here at that point) or take them to a remote beach ages away and hope for no arsehole dog owners there to stymie it after the long drive to get there. Ferrets don’t exercise for long it seems (guess they get puffed or something, can’t recall the reason??) but like the mental stimulation and exercise out of cage. What should have been a quick job down local park where off-leash is prohibited turned into a job of a few hours to find suitable location without an entitled dog owner breaking the rules and thinking their animals rights trumped everyone else’s. They didn’t feel they could charge for hours given the ferrets didn’t actually walk for hours but quite a short time, so factoring time in they worked for a considerable loss, but they did it because they genuinely cared about the ferrets interests. There should be places where they could have safely/easily done this and theoretically there was but not in practice.

If people want to walk a rhinoceros in the park it’s ok as long as it’s legal, if a dog is a chaser then it should be on a lead all the time in public places, attitudes like yours give dog owners a bad name, I have a whippet and he chases everything, I wouldn’t dream of having off his lead.

Having him of his lead.

Bloody hell off his lead.