Room for improvement in urban off-leash parks?

Barbara Walmer CPDT-KSA, CBCC-KA, KPA CTP, ACDBC
InfoStream Guest Author

Living in an urban environment changes the way in which both people and their dogs exercise and socialize. In a rural setting, people tend to go to each other’s homes or the nearest town’s coffee shop for coffee. Dogs run around loose on the land with minimal leash or fence time and they have only a few dogs they meet and greet; typically the neighbor’s dog. There is a lack of focus on purposeful exercise as the dogs spend numerous hours a day of physically exercising while outside. In contrast, people in urban settings are more likely to meet at a variety of eating and drinking establishments or malls.  People go to gyms for exercise, due to the more office-based employment, and dogs are on leashes and behind fences for a lot of their lives. Many cities now have off-leash parks or areas where dogs and their owners can converge to exercise and socialize. 

While some of these areas have natural landscaping features others are just barren fields. Many people frequent the same parks on a regular basis and the parks features, how convenient the location is, whether their dog has certain ‘doggie friends’ they like to meet, or whether the person enjoys the social atmosphere, influences these decisions. These parks can become a community asset, but they can also become a drawback depending on the dog behaviour of the dogs in them and the awareness level of the people using them.

Dogs as a species are social, but just like people, some enjoy large groups while others are more selective as to whom they spend time with. Some dogs like rough, physical play, while others enjoy smelling the grass and bushes while just being in the vicinity of other dogs. A dog’s dog skills are formed from many different factors, including: genetics, early nurture, socialization in the past and present, age, sex status, training, along with individuality. With all these components it can be difficult to determine exactly which dogs will do well at the off-leash park or mingling with different dogs. 

For many people the best way they know to determine if their dog is okay to go to an off-leash park is to take them and see what happens. To add to the fog, many people are not aware of canine body language or have misconceptions about it.  “My dog is just wanting to play,” is an often-cited phrase by some dog owners at the park. If your dog wants to play, no matter how inappropriate the context, does that give him a free pass? But if my 10-year-old Golden just wants to smell the grass does that mean he has to put up with the 10-month-old Boxer jumping all over him? What happens if my dog snaps at the Boxer. Is that “normal” behaviour and should we just let it play out, should I leave the park with my Golden, because he doesn’t want to play, or should the Boxer owner leave the park because he is too playful and not under control? What could be a compromise for both? Can owners realistically work this out?  What is fair?

With dogs coming from many different backgrounds and people wanting their dogs to get exercise and socialization, how can off-leash parks be for all urban dogs and manageable?