Why Off-Leash Dog Parks are Bad for my Dog

Warm weather descended in my area recently providing gorgeous 70 degree plus days.  I saw throngs of people and their dogs enjoying the outdoors as they paraded down the sidewalks while basking in the sun.  With warmer weather, not only will people be walking their dogs on a more regular basis, dogs will be taken to dog parks to enjoy an off-leash experience with other canine buddies.

It’s a place where you won’t find my dog or me anytime soon.

I’ve never had a reason to go to a dog park since my dogs always did great while off-leash.  That all changed last year when we adopted our tripawd, Brody.

Brody is his name and energetic is his “game.”  Brody was a puppy when my husband and I adopted him last year.  At the time of his adoption, we already had an older brother, Jazz (seen here), for him.  Brody loved and respected Jazz which lent itself to zero problems between the two of them.   Sadly, Jazz unexpectedly died three months after adopting Brody who now lost his best friend.

We know Brody loves dogs since he cries for the myriad of dogs on his daily walks with my husband.  First, we wanted to give Brody a chance to run off-leash because he is always on a leash for his walks or when outside.  We made the decision to let him run free in pen at a dog park.  Our second goal was for him to interact with other dogs off-leash.

The park we chose was new and few knew about it.  We watched dogs in three pens and was a bit disturbed by what I saw.  There were larger dogs mixed with smaller dogs.  Since I was a complete novice with this experience,  I thought they must know their dogs and feel safe in this setting.

Brody had the fourth pen to himself.  I unbuckled his leash and he loved running around. I tested him to make sure he would listen when called in this setting.  He did.  The three of us were enjoying ourselves when a small dog entered the pen. We didn’t think Brody was ready for this and didn’t want him to interact with other dogs at this point but we waited anxiously to see what his reaction would be.  He jumped up on the man who had the small dog.  My husband stopped him because this is simply bad etiquette.  I don’t allow Brody jumping up on anyone.  Then Brody began chasing the small dog.  It was apparent he didn’t want to hurt him but he wouldn’t stop pestering the little guy.  Unacceptable again.  I won’t allow my dog to behave badly! The man could not have been nicer to us when I apologized.  I told him this was our first time.  Once he left we had the pen to ourselves again.

As we walked around with Brody I noticed piles and piles of dog waste.  There were stands which was supposed to have pooper scooper waste clean-up bags but none were to be found . There were communal water bowls which I know is common but I don’t want my dog drinking out of these bowls because I have no idea how often they are cleaned, how long the water has been there or if there is an ill dog drinking from the bowl.  I also saw many toys in our pen which dogs can and will fight over.

There was a fight in another pen.  You could see it coming with a submissive dog getting picked on.  When we arrived, there was a group of adults standing and talking while their dogs mingled and/or ran around.  We saw smaller dogs with larger dogs in one pen.  This was problematic for me.  When you have the owners talking among themselves and not closely monitoring their dogs, you are asking for problems.

As we continued to play with Brody in the pen by ourselves, a woman entered the pen with her small dog.  Brody and this other dog didn’t exactly get along.  I wasn’t going to wait for a fight to break out so I told my husband to get Brody.  (I’m on crutches.)  The woman told us to let them to work it out.

That was it for me.  There’s no way we were going to wait for these two dogs to fight it out.  It was time to go.

When we first arrived, I was excited for Brody but when we exited our car, I had this strange feeling that this wasn’t going to be a good idea.  Lesson: always listen to your gut.

The overall feeling was a dog park is not a good idea for Brody.  I’ve learned a lot since that day.  I’ve found out that most dog trainers are generally against these parks because the people aren’t responsible enough with their dogs.  It’s our job to protect our pets.  We can’t let dogs “work it out.”  Trainers and responsible owners agree on this.  We must watch our dogs at all times in the parks.  You can’t be sitting or standing around and seizing this opportunity to socialize with others.  Dog parks are serious business.

I read that most dog bites arise from these parks.  Whether it’s true or not,  I see how easily dogs can be bit.  It’s too easy if you’e not paying attention.  I certainly wasn’t going to allow Brody to do whatever he wanted and let him possibly getting entangled in a fight.  I won’t put my own dog in danger but I also won’t put any other dog in danger.  I can’t explain the woman’s response to allow that to happen. It’s irresponsible and from all accounts, it is the wrong way to handle this situation.  Tyson Hainsworth, dog trainer for Dog Squad, said this in an article he wrote about dog parks – Phone the Animal Emergency Hospital and ask them how many emergency cases they get directly from the off-leash dog park (the number I have heard is 90-95%.)

I’m not against all dog parks because I believe there can be benefits. According to Dan Emerson of Dog Channel.com, proponents of dog parks cite the following benefits: “They promote responsible pet ownership and the enforcement of dog-control laws; give dogs a place to exercise safely, thus reducing barking and other problem behaviors; provide seniors and disabled owners with an accessible place to exercise their companions; and provide an area for community-building socializing.

Hainsworth says “dog parks were started with good intentions but they cause way more problems than they solve.  Many people go there with little control over their dogs, only because they don’t know the most effective ways to work with their dog.

What is also troublesome for me is that no one knows if all dogs are vaccinated in these dog parks.  Do they have an easily transmittable disease?  Do they have parasites?  Do they have fleas?  Brody was and is vaccinated but I had no idea if other dogs could spread a disease to him.  These are real issues we must face with dog parks.

For me,  a dog park is not a place where I choose to exercise and socialize Brody. Not all dog parks are the same but I would be facing some of the problems I wrote about here and I’m not comfortable with putting my dog in a possible dangerous situation.  I’m glad for those who find it a great place to take their dogs.

For Brody, he loves going for walks every single day.  He has lots of toys in which he and I play every day.  He gets a good workout during playtime.  He gets exercise.  And he’s happy and safe!  That’s what matters!

Have a story, please email me at tevangelistaepp@yahoo. Like my tv page at https://www.facebook.com/ACloseUpLookAtAnimalWelfareIssues.