One of our members had a terrible experience at the offleash when another dog bit both her and her dog. Unfortunately this is a public place and we can't restrict it just to our members or just to people who know how to be responsible with their dogs. If you use the offleash park please know it's at your own risk.

To avoid any unnecessary injuries I am going to suggest that the monthly meetings be leashed walks only. Anyone planning on using the offleash park should plan to do that on their own. I would hate for our meetups not to be a safe outing. There are many trails and routes throughout the park that would be fun for our group to use.

We have such a great group. I also welcome any meetups that you would like to put together. Just go thru me and I will post it with the person's name who will be organizing it.

All of our private meetups have been great. Unfortunately, the offleash park does not offer any security and there will be some who ruin it for everyone.

TY! Ann

As a new pet owner in the area, I joined this group to find nice places to take my puppy. I have seen this post and the related comments. Which brings me to the question... How are dogs supposed to behave at a dog park? Can someone provide suggestions/ideas/comments on what a dog (and Owner) should or should not do?

Several people have said that owners are not supervising their pets. While I have no first had experience, maybe it's not a lack of supervision, but a lack of education. If a new pet owner goes to an off lease park and see's how other dogs are behaving, then they would probably think this is acceptable behavior.

Anyway, I would just like to know what to expect, and what would be expected of me when taking my dog to the park.

Thanks to anyone who replies.

Yours,
Janelle
& Midnight :)

For this subject, I will put my 2 cents in. Most dog owner care enough about our four legged friends to always do the right thing for them, and keep them out of harms way. Obedience training is the first step to a well behaved dog, and most of us work to achieve that goal. There are the others that do not understand the entire concept of "responsible dog ownership", and those that know me can contest that I do not keep my mouth shut when I see a circumstance that could be harmful to humans or other dogs. I do not trust dog owners/handlers that I don't know or have not been around. All of you are the role models of responsible dog ownership, and care what happens to your dogs. My dogs play rough at home, but I would not put up with rough play out in public. When I tell him to stop, come, sit, stay he complies. I would expect the same thing with other responsible dog owners out in public, and having full control over you dog is a requirement. Here are my suggestions to keep your off leash area safe, and worry free:

1. I would have everyone write the parks about your concerns, and that they need to post that irresponsible dog owners can be fined, and be asked to leave the area. I have never been down there so I don't know what is posted.
2.Maybe they can have certain times that you can obtain a permit for certain group, like in hour increments or so. What would be a $5 charge for an hour, knowing that your dog and yourself will be safe.
3. Lock the irresponsible dog owners in a cage with non-social dogs for about 5 minutes to get the point across.
4. Maybe have someone monitor the off leash area during high activity periods. I know for a fact that there has been at least 2 incidents there where they had to take a dog to the emergency vet due to injuries sustained by another dog.

I also have concerns if these "irresponsible dog owners" have taken their dog to the vet to get their proper vaccinations. I hope my tangent has helped. Good Luck with everything. Beth

Thanks Beth..I love your tangents! Ann

I am gathering responses and with everyone's permission will send them to the park with good suggestions (we don't want them to close the park to dogs).

If you have been to other dog parks that you are comfortable with please share what they are "doing right" so we can suggest that.

From what I've seen at the offleash, most of the dogs play extremely well with each other..but there are those who may feel threatened, intimidated, and literally brought into the park with the "hopes" the dog will become more social...that is an accident waiting to happen.

Beth brings up many good points, but the one I think is the most helpful is to have a trained dog that listens to you and to have your own dog under control at all times.

Since we just want to get together and have some fun with our dogs, I think we can do it leashed on the trails, walkways and at our own private gatherings...suggestions more than welcome and I'm always open to anyone who wants to plan a meetup. Just go thru me and I'll post it!

As always...we have such a great meetup group! :) Ann

Thank you for the comments to my post.

Do either of you (or anyone else) have an suggestions on the best way to go about obedience training other then taking them to classes? My husband and I have done a very good job of teaching our puppy the basics (sit, laydown, come) but it seems like he will only obey them inside the house. He listens very well indoors, but when we have him out in the yard, he gets very distracted and it's rather hit or miss if he will listen.

Any suggestions?

Thanks,
Janelle

Janelle...classes would be my first suggestion but check out the library for some training books and see what you find..also look online..good luck!