Another, DIFFERENT Dog Park Rant
So today I am on my way to the dog park, as usual, with my Corgi, Liliput responsibly crated in the back seat. This particular fenced, off-leash park is inside a larger, multi-use county park. There are many hiking trails, bike trails, prairie, shelters, soccer fields, and even a model airplane field.
Not everyone is a fan of off-leash parks, nor is every dog suited. Therefore, I often see leashed dogs on the hiking trails. Some people can even walk their dogs TO the park on leash, since it's located in the middle of a small town (which I have to drive to,) then let them off inside the fence. It's a flexible arrangement.
Today, I drove into the park on the road, and saw a woman walking her two little yorkies. Nice looking little dogs, probably well cared-for. Now, my Prius, being electric, is a very quiet car. The manual warns about "stealth mode", when pedestrians may not hear you coming. Granting that, I still can't say it's my fault that the unleashed yorkies ran out into the road in front of my car, the owner oblivious. I stopped, honked, and the owner noticed. She called to the dog in the road, but did he come? Of course not! He simply stood in the road looking at me, while another car from the other direction also stopped and waited. Eventually he went to his owner, along with his companion yorkie, and we all continued on our ways.
Ok, REALLY! If you want to be off-leash, and are in a park with an off-leash area, WHY ARE YOU WALKING TWO SMALL DOGS ON THE STREET WITHOUT LEASHES??? And if you don't like the off-leash park area, but don't want a leash, "WHY ARE YOU NOT ON A HIKING TRAIL IN THE FIELD INSTEAD OF THE ROAD???"
I did later see this woman in the off-leash park, so I don't know what her story was. But I had been poised to make a Puppy Pancake in the road, and that was totally unnecessary. My usual moral outrage wouldn't drive me to write this post, but today it was ME in the car, and it would have been MY Yorkie Pancake on the road, and I would have had to live with that.
So this is my dog park rant, about someone irresponsible NOT having their dogs in the off-leash park. If it's not one thing, it's another.
Not everyone is a fan of off-leash parks, nor is every dog suited. Therefore, I often see leashed dogs on the hiking trails. Some people can even walk their dogs TO the park on leash, since it's located in the middle of a small town (which I have to drive to,) then let them off inside the fence. It's a flexible arrangement.
Today, I drove into the park on the road, and saw a woman walking her two little yorkies. Nice looking little dogs, probably well cared-for. Now, my Prius, being electric, is a very quiet car. The manual warns about "stealth mode", when pedestrians may not hear you coming. Granting that, I still can't say it's my fault that the unleashed yorkies ran out into the road in front of my car, the owner oblivious. I stopped, honked, and the owner noticed. She called to the dog in the road, but did he come? Of course not! He simply stood in the road looking at me, while another car from the other direction also stopped and waited. Eventually he went to his owner, along with his companion yorkie, and we all continued on our ways.
Ok, REALLY! If you want to be off-leash, and are in a park with an off-leash area, WHY ARE YOU WALKING TWO SMALL DOGS ON THE STREET WITHOUT LEASHES??? And if you don't like the off-leash park area, but don't want a leash, "WHY ARE YOU NOT ON A HIKING TRAIL IN THE FIELD INSTEAD OF THE ROAD???"
I did later see this woman in the off-leash park, so I don't know what her story was. But I had been poised to make a Puppy Pancake in the road, and that was totally unnecessary. My usual moral outrage wouldn't drive me to write this post, but today it was ME in the car, and it would have been MY Yorkie Pancake on the road, and I would have had to live with that.
So this is my dog park rant, about someone irresponsible NOT having their dogs in the off-leash park. If it's not one thing, it's another.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Bev Levy on
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I often wonder what people were thinking but it usually turns out they were not. I am so glad you were able to stop in time.
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Permalink Reply by Kari & Jackson on
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It's illegal here for people to walk their dogs off-leash in non off-leash areas. Maybe you can petition the same for your city? I've heard of people being issued citations also.
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Permalink Reply by Julia on
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Of course it's illegal. In fact, as I was leaving the park, the park ranger arrived, and I heard him telling someone else in the parking lot that there's a county ordinance about being leashed in the park, meaning between your car and the gate. Where's a good ranger when you need one?
Guilty confession: I was trying to sneak out past the ranger. Licenses and park permits expire on Dec. 30 each year, and guess who hadn't renewed her dogs' permits. Oops. I waited until he was approaching some other poor soul, snuck out the gate, and promptly got the dogs' papers, went downtown and re-upped for 2010. Shhh, don't tell.
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