MORE DOG PARKS FOR ST. PAUL?
November 1st, 2007
St. Paul presently has one city-run dog park (Arlington on the east side), and one sponsored by Ramsey County (Battle Creek).
The STP Parks Commission has organized a task force to explore the possibility of opening other parks in the central and western neighborhoods of the city.
If you are a St. Paul resident, and interested in supporting such an initiative, you can send me an email (jan@carrcreatives.com)
Jan Carr
St. Paul
Comments
Sounds good but.......before
Sounds good but.......before we get ahead of ourselves there seems to be a need for a awareness/education initiative of what dog parks are and what they are not. As we make more dog parks I am seeing a drastic increase in people and dogs that should not be there and a general lack of understanding of canine behavior.
Dog parks are: A place for dogs to run, wrestle, and play provided the dogs actually enjoy other dogs company and are properly trained in obedience.
Dog parks are NOT: A place for human socializing at the sacrifice of the dog's actual enjoyment, a dog owners right to attend because it will be "fun to see the dog there", a place to take your dog and avoid certain types of dog play, a place for your aggressive dog to get "socialized", a place for dogs under the age of 6 months. I can't tell you how many 9 week old puppies I have seen at dog parks!!!!
Dog parks should be designed to keep people and dogs moving with a walking path. Problems occur when there are stationary congregations of dogs/people. Also, PLEASE be sure to advocate for a small dogs only area. As a large dog owner I have had too many negative experiences with small dogs and their owners with poor obedience, aggression, and forced exposure to large dogs despite obvious fear.
Good luck and let's be proactive in avoiding tragic outcomes that are not good for the community.
I might take issue with your
I might take issue with your use of the word "drastic", but I agree entirely with the points you have made here. Your comments bespeak a person who is wise and knowledgeable in the intricacies of dog park behavior.
One thing we are doing is working on a simple pamphlet that explains and illustrates dog behaviors in a rudimentary way. We hope this will at least be a starting point in helping people ward off aggressive behaviors before they develop into a real dog fight.
We are also encouraging experienced, regular park users to be more proactive in speaking to those clueless folks who idly stand by as their bully dogs turn into marauders, or conversely, those folks who bring fearful, submissive dogs into the park that really need the protection of the pack leader (i.e. the owner).
Mostly, I think the problem stems from sheer lack of awareness and knowledge. That is, by the time most people get a dog they have at least a vague idea of how to go
about house training, teaching basic obedience, etc. But dog parks are a relatively new phenomenon, and many people are just beginning to learn some of the basics about socialization and interaction when it comes to dogs running free in a park.
But that is beginning to change; I notice that Cheryl Smith has just written a short book on dog behavior in dog parks:
http://www.dogwise.com/ItemDetails.cfm?ID=DTB918
Do you know of any other information sources in this vein?
"Idly stand by". Great
"Idly stand by".
Great phrase. What I mean is, a lot of these 'bully' incidents occur for just that reason. Proper park design discourages standing (or sitting) about, and rather encourages walking, but not providing convenient areas for owners and pets to cluster. When you remain in one place, amidst a group, you are unwittingly setting the dogs up for territorial and posession issues.
Design the layout so the visitors are encouraged to continue moving. The dogs will enjoy themselves more, and will be more focused on the owner than a small patch of land or stray toy.
I go to the dog park twice a
I go to the dog park twice a week and have more complaints about the parks than the other dogs. At Battle Creek, one side of the dog park area is completely unfenced - a fact that my dog discovered and exploited to run across McKnight Road to check out the garbage cans in the alley across the street. I can no longer go there because he knows about that opening now.
At Minnehaha (in Minneapolis), there are several gates that corral all arriving and departing dogs into one small area, creating the inevitable scrapes and snarls of on-leash dogs. Here is where inexperience comes in - don't stand around right by the gate forming a pack of dogs as others are trying to enter! There is plenty of room to add several gates at the entrance so that all dogs don't have to use the same one. And, with snow and ice right now, there is a slippery steep decline into the gate, so I get to navigate that as well as my alpha male as we approach the glut of dogs inside the gate.
The design of these two parks did not take into consideration the realities of dog behavior. Does anyone else notice that?!
I want to add how important
I want to add how important it is to educate residents of the areas where you're considering putting in a dog park. I live in S. Minneapolis near Minnehaha Parkway. The park board proposed putting a small dog park under the Nicollet Avenue overpass, which would have been a unique spot for an offleash area and much closer to me than any other park. But the neighbors refused to grant permission, so we dog owners lost out.
I don't know if they were concerned with increased traffic, parking, noise, odor, or just didn't want change, but it only takes a few contrary people to deny a dog park to many. Try to get the dog owners in the proposed area to talk with their neighbors ahead of a hearing/vote and persuade them on a one-to-one basis.