I wanted to add some more-I was on the tablet last night and it is a bear to type on, hence all the typos.
There are 3 dog parks in our area (we are so lucky!) One is really new and in a shopping/civic area, but its a bit smaller and the small dog area is TINY and full of agility equipment so there can't be a lot of full on running around. Its gravel and mulch and very dusty, there is no shade. We've never been there when other dogs were there (it was raining the day we went) but I hear it is the busier dog park in the area.
We found riverside dog park by accident, and like it better. It has two very big areas, one for small dogs and one for big dogs, its grassy, and less crowded. Because it is less crowded, the big dogs and little dogs usually play together on one side of the fence, but if the park has a ton of high-energy labs/boxers etc doing the pack mentality thing, Jaeger gets a little spooked and so if any dogs are in the small dog area, i will take him over there instead. He has more confidence around packs of smaller dogs. They have 4 dog fountains, compared to the ONE at the other park (which is in the big dogs area, you know, because little dogs don't need water) and a concrete slab with a faucet if you need to hose your dog down. If you drive a little ways, there's a river that allows dogs to cool off (but its not part of the dog park.)
The other dog park we go to is in Atlanta when my Sir is there on business. Its got a coffee shop attached, and is the smallest of the parks we go to, but I really enjoy being able to sit in one spot for 3-4 hours, enjoy a coffee, and social the dog. He's most anxious here because its mostly big dogs that come, but they have an old upside down bathtub in the yard that he likes to chill out on to escape being underfoot. |