Frustrated at lack of good off lead dog walks

[familyconflict]

I’m feeling so frustrated at restrictions being placed on free spaces for dogs. Trying to move and find a place with good access to walks in the South.

I have owned dogs for many years. Have excellent control, responsible owner, leads near livestock, pick up poo etc.

On a walk - for the majority of time, I want my dogs to run free. They are a breed that need to. It is not ‘dog friendly’ to say dogs on leads. It is the same as saying kids can only walk not run. It isn’t fair and doesn’t work. Dogs need to run and that is part of the joy of walking them. ( I have kids BTW)

I live near a town with very low ratio of square meters of green space per person. Thought I had found a location on the outskirts with good walks but the National Trust who own a small bit and council have decided that the main bit of accessible greenery ( that lots of people use) is going to have a few grazing livestock on for “wildflowers/eco” reasons. All going through and sign are going up demanding dogs will need to be on 2 m leads.

It is making me angry so I am trying to find info or a database with details of good spaces, free of restrictions. Just wondered if anyone is aware of anything online?

Why do you need the whole field? Just walk for miles along the footpath

I don't think you've read my post about pulling Spaniels off a dying sheep? If a landowner has the grace to allow you to walk a dog on their land, then their rules stand. In our case, on lead or off you trot. Needs no Vet opinion or involvement. Any rural Vet will be sick to the stomach of patching up or shooting damaged livestock. Most are actually shot by the knacker man, Farmer or Gamekeeper as few Vets carry firearms these days. But you get the picture. I can see it won't be long before all dogs are banned from Privately owned property in the Countryside. The Public are becoming a liability. If one good dog owner is allowed to walk, ten nightmares will copy. Armed with plastic ball flingers and water bottles. Rarely poo bags.

I always put my dogs on lead by sheep or cattle - basic etiquette surely. But that said, I can whistle my spaniels and they will stop mid squirrel chase and return to my side.

The only time I have experienced a serious dog attack was with a dog that was being walked on a lead. Dog was being walked on a harness and slipped the harness and badly attacked mine. The dog was on a lead but the owner had zero control over it. Most of the serious dog attacks I've seen online have been from strong dogs being walked on a lead but the owner not being able to hold the dog back/not having the right equipment or dogs that have escaped from their property rather than dogs being walked off lead by owners that attack (although it does happen of course).

My rule of thumb for over a decade of dog ownership has been to walk my dogs off lead in suitable areas (so not near roads or livestock or anywhere with signs up saying dogs on lead). It does really annoy me when I see people walking dogs off lead in unsuitable areas because there should be areas where people can go without encountering dogs off lead at all. If I see someone walking a dog on a lead or someone without a dog (so a jogger, family with kids etc) I call mine back and put them back on a lead whilst we pass. If I didn't have the control over them to do this, they wouldn't go off lead in public. If the area is busy enough that I'd be putting them on every 2 seconds they stay on a lead- and it's an area that I wouldn't walk my spaniel in as she really does need to go off lead.

Not every dog needs to go off lead. My terrier would be perfectly happy to stay on his lead with the odd run around in the garden or at a secure dog field. He doesn't run around on his walks anyway. My spaniel needs off lead exercise. She likes the dog field but it's not the same as running free in the woods or country park. I run with my dogs too (canicross style) but it's still not the same as free running, being able to stop and sniff, make their own decisions, run in and out of the stream, play with other dogs (with permission) etc.

...and what about people who are using these walks/paths etc for cycling, running or just want a walk with the kids or on their own without an off lead dog charging up to them?

How do you pick up their shit when they've run off? you don't, its left there for some unfortunate to step in or a park/forestry worker to find whilst strimming or mowing.

Its this idea that dogs and their owners have precedence over all others is what has led to more and more owners of land/beaches banning dogs or insisting they are on leads.

You ve only yourselves to blame.

What I genuinely don’t understand is why in places like Australia and some metropolitan areas of the US, where off leash isn’t a thing, dogs don’t seem to suffer.

It’s a £400 fine for walking a dog off leash in a public place in Queensland. That means on the footpath, in the local recreational park & in the state parks. Most local areas will have the equivalent of a fenced dog field for off leash exercise.

Basic, you would think, I agree. Sounds like you have put hard work into your dog. However, no dog should be mid chase of any animal, whether considered vermin or not, that doesn't belong to you. Once they've run, it's already gone too far. Dogs can be trained to ignore flight completely, as I'm sure you know. It's hard.

As soon as ddog makes a move towards a squirrel I whistle and there is no chase. I’ve stopped him paying attention to cats/birds etc but squirrels are still exciting. Nothing the whistle can’t control though.

I don't think dogs necessarily suffer from being made to live on lead, but I do think it must be a pretty bloody miserable existence for them to never, ever experience the sheer joy of being able to run free.

Of course the vast majority of dogs will adapt to whatever their circumstances are - but that doesn't make it a good thing or something we should be striving towards.

In most parts of Oz, there are enormous parks with off-lead access for dogs. So its not hard to find off-lead areas. So I gather, anyway.

imo if you can't give your dog what it needs then you shouldn't have a dog (or a dogs with specific needs).

I don't think anyone would disagree with you.

And as it's currently perfectly legal in the UK to walk your dog off the lead, people aren't doing anything wrong by having dogs who need off-lead exercise.

The weird attempts at control are coming from people who either can't let their dogs off or who aren't confident enough to do so - which is fine but not a reason to curtail everyone else.

In reality all dogs need time of lead for their normal development, socialisation and enrichment - in some cases that cannot happen for various reasons (not all to do with the owners, some dogs had bad early life experiences for instance).

Dogs need to have the confident to be able to have freedom and explore the places around them

If I lived in Australia or the USA then I simply wouldn't have the dogs I have as I wouldn't be able to give them the life they need if they had to remain leashed 95% of the time.

There's also lots of things that go on with dog ownership in the USA which just aren't acceptable in the UK, cropping, docking, crating for 8 hours plus, invisible fences...

Exactly - I'm not entirely sure that animal welfare standards in the US are something to strive for.

To follow up about the US - I'm a dog walker and used to be a member of several international dog walker groups on Facebook - dogs are routinely left alone for hours at a time, including overnight, with just three visits a day and often no walks at all.

I'm obviously not saying that everyone in the US treats their dogs like that but when the subject came up there was always a massive divide between what the UK walkers felt was acceptable and what the US ones did.

I don't think we're perfect in the UK either - far from it - but I'm not sure why anyone dog lover and owner would think it a good idea to restrict our animals to a point where they can't ever run free.

The other issue WRT to the US is that many suburban and rural houses have massive 'yards' - i.e. 100s of square feet of lawn, bushes and trees. You can have middling income and have an enormous garden.

Good point - many people have gardens that are easily 10x the size of anything you see here.

I have a HPR breed and luckily (in West of Scotland) we have tons of off lead walking options - not sure if Scottish "right to roam" laws generally mean we're more used to/expecting of that sort of freedom. I hear what you're saying about needing free running time - my other little dog would be fine with on lead/local park/dog walking field, but my HPR really does need to explore - and an on lead walk every day (no matter how long we were out for), or a paid for dog walking field for one hour just wouldn't cut it for him, he's be bored out of his mind. Similarly to yourself, he's exceptionally well trained, so we do not cause problems to other walkers or the local wildlife.

@Ohfgswhat I feel you didn't read my post.

You talk of loose dogs being shot. And then a poorly trained spaniel.

I'll say it again, my high drive working breed has iron clad recall. He regularly recalls away from hares, squirrels, sheep and other livestock, other dogs, people... anything.

If like you said the land owner requires leads then obviousky you follow those rules but thats not the situation we were referring to.

I've put hundreds of hours and thousands of pounds into his training. In a rural, public space, why would I put him on a lead?

In order to be properly controlled a dog needs TRAINING.

Trainjng standards these days are so incredibly low due to the epidemic of positive only training that doesn't bloody work.

Where are you?
Sw london / Surrey borders have plenty of open spaces where dogs can run free.

Wimbledon common
Horton country park
Epsom common
Hogsmill
Various places around Esher, Guildford, Farnham.....