Dog parks?

[Little mama]

I haven't taken Allie yet to a dog park., but have been thinking about it. How about a dog beach? We live in sw Florida and with summer quickly approaching was wondering about it. Obviously keeping her hydrated and not letting her get too hot, I'm more concerned with getting matted from being wet and running around. She plays with another pup and when the grass is wet & she runs around like mad she gets filthy & her poor little legs get all matted, the groomer said it was from the grass being wet. I was wondering any special tricks from all you veteran moms ????

[Britster]

Originally Posted by JenniferLeigh

I'm lucky enough to live within a 3 minute walk of a dog park, and I've been taking Lexi there since she was able. There are quite a few small dog owners that visit the park, although there is no small dog section.

It seems to me, incidents occur when:
- Dog is on leash
- Owner gets freaked out

It is my opinion that if you are scared for your dog, or insist on keeping it on a leash because of aggression issues or whatever reason. Do not go to an off leash dog park. It's asking for trouble.

We frequent a couple other parks in the city, usually we'll go with friends. We have a really nice one that runs along the river with lots of trees and even some agility stuff. Again, no small dog section but you'll see tons of small dogs running around, and from what I know - there has never been a problem.

I have seen a couple scruffs break out between bigger dogs (nothing serious) and if Lexi starts to head over, I simply call her back. For small dog owners, I think it is very important your dog listens to you in an off leash situation.

Occationally throughout the world, something bad will happen but that doesn't mean I'm going to stop bringing Lexi to dog parks.

[Britster]

Originally Posted by Little mama

I haven't taken Allie yet to a dog park., but have been thinking about it. How about a dog beach? We live in sw Florida and with summer quickly approaching was wondering about it. Obviously keeping her hydrated and not letting her get too hot, I'm more concerned with getting matted from being wet and running around. She plays with another pup and when the grass is wet & she runs around like mad she gets filthy & her poor little legs get all matted, the groomer said it was from the grass being wet. I was wondering any special tricks from all you veteran moms ????

Jackson loves the dog beach. I've never let him off-leash yet on it (because the beach area is not fenced in) but he runs along the water, he loves swimming. I keep his hair fairly short so I don't have to worry about a whole lot of matting.

[crb]

Although we have many dog parks in my area, we had our first small dog park open up last year and my babies love it. As long as your pet it up to date on all its shots and you have a small dog park I say go for it, your baby will have fun.

[orlnurse]

Wouldn't it be great if there was an area for not just small dogs, but "tiny" dogs at the doggie park? I had Max in the small dog area and this lady came in with some sort of sharpei mix that was aggressive who looked to be about 30 lbs. When I mentioned nicely that this area is for small dogs she got offended, said some words, and finally left. Now that I have Lily who is only 6 lbs, I can't imagine taking her to the same area with 20lb dogs (which is usually the weight limit for the small dog area).

[Britster]

Originally Posted by orlnurse

Wouldn't it be great if there was an area for not just small dogs, but "tiny" dogs at the doggie park? I had Max in the small dog area and this lady came in with some sort of sharpei mix that was aggressive who looked to be about 30 lbs. When I mentioned nicely that this area is for small dogs she got offended, said some words, and finally left. Now that I have Lily who is only 6 lbs, I can't imagine taking her to the same area with 20lb dogs (which is usually the weight limit for the small dog area).

My friend has 2 dogs, one about 5lbs and the other 6lbs and they do fine in the small dog section, where we often have 20lb dogs.

[orlnurse]

Originally Posted by Britster

My friend has 2 dogs, one about 5lbs and the other 6lbs and they do fine in the small dog section, where we often have 20lb dogs.

maybe my experience was just an isolated case then....I'm just nervous about taking my 6lb dog based on my past experience with my 12 lb dog. The good thing though is that my work schedule allows me to go during the week when its not that busy

[manolos mom]

Originally Posted by orlnurse

Wouldn't it be great if there was an area for not just small dogs, but "tiny" dogs at the doggie park? I had Max in the small dog area and this lady came in with some sort of sharpei mix that was aggressive who looked to be about 30 lbs. When I mentioned nicely that this area is for small dogs she got offended, said some words, and finally left. Now that I have Lily who is only 6 lbs, I can't imagine taking her to the same area with 20lb dogs (which is usually the weight limit for the small dog area).

I agree, after that Boston came charging over to get Pablo, no more. But every dog park is different. This was 20lbs and under. It makes me mad that people bring their aggressive dogs thinking they are going to rehab. Get rehab first then bring in your dog on a leash. I wont ever go back.

[yorkieusa]

Originally Posted by jjohnson86

When I heard that they were getting one here where I live I was really happy because I wanted a place to be able to take Mindy for walks and also a place for her to play and have fun. She loves people and other dogs, she's just got that playful outgoing personality that I love and nothing slows her down so itll be good to take her to a place where she can use all that energy! Thanks for the replies, I appreciate your imput on the matter because I don't want to do something that isn't recommended for a dog as little as our yorkies are. I raelly hope they have the big and small dog sides seperated.

Why don't you call them and ask? If they haven't thought about it perhaps you could ask that they separate it into big dog/small dog sides.

I would never take mine where they had big dogs running around, too. I've read of too many horror stories of the little one's being attacked and killed or injured. Just because someone takes their dog to a dog park doesn't mean their dog is trained or nice.

[BanditSocks2]

Originally Posted by Britster

I love our dog park. I don't WHAT I would do without it. It has a big dog/little dog area which is so convenient and much less worry. It's a state park so it's not just a dog park... it costs $6 to get in every-time OR you can buy a yearly pass for $40. I love most of the people there, you become friends with a lot of people you meet there and familiar with all the dogs. Jackson has all of his favorite dogs and people. There's also a dog beach.

I think you just have to be the judge of things. If people aren't cleaning up their dogs poop, leaving things messy, etc, I wouldn't like going to a nasty park of course. But we've had 99.9% of good times and the .1% is usually a human causing problems, not a dog!

I want to add too though I go to another dog park about 20 minutes away from my house that is FREE and it's upkept really nice. I've never had any issues with people there, even the big dog area is usually laidback and friendly. I usually go to this one when the state park is closed on Tuesday's. I try to get to a dog park about 3x a week in the warmer weather.

We love this dog park too! They have a separate one for big and little dogs, they have lots of trails and paths and even some hiking trails, a dog beach, and lots of fields. Like Brit said, almost every time is great, with the exception of a few times when humans have been irresponsible (like when one dog owner wouldn't even attempt to curb his dogs incessant barking and another lady swiped at it and hit it, and it kind of escalated from there....but then again, that's the humans lol). Big thumbs up for dog parks

[jjohnson86]

I can't wait till our dog park opens so that I can take Mindy and see how she likes it, see how the environment will be and what kind of people will be going. If I feet at all uncomfrtable with her being there she won't be going back but I'm hoping it will be a positive experience all around. I'd love for her to be able to play with dogs her own size, I have a lab and she tries to play with her but the lab has no idea what to do with a dog so small lol. I just want her to get her exercise and have some fun, meet a few other dogs and people, would be fun for us both. Thanks all for sharing your experiences, really helps me determine whether or not its worth even trying and I want to at least try before I make up my mind about it.

[Britster]

Originally Posted by jjohnson86

I can't wait till our dog park opens so that I can take Mindy and see how she likes it, see how the environment will be and what kind of people will be going. If I feet at all uncomfrtable with her being there she won't be going back but I'm hoping it will be a positive experience all around. I'd love for her to be able to play with dogs her own size, I have a lab and she tries to play with her but the lab has no idea what to do with a dog so small lol. I just want her to get her exercise and have some fun, meet a few other dogs and people, would be fun for us both. Thanks all for sharing your experiences, really helps me determine whether or not its worth even trying and I want to at least try before I make up my mind about it.

I wouldn't immediately write off a park, even if you have a 1st bad experience. The next time may be sooo much better, etc. I always give things more than 1 try! Like I said, some days I can go to the park and it sucks. Either there is nobody there, or dogs that just aren't really playing or connecting, etc. Then some days Jackson just has an absolute BLAST and never wants to leave lol. So ya always have the off days and the great days.