Dog parks and kids. What do you think?

[keeks62]

I regularly visit the dog park. It has been a lifesaver as far as mellowing my very active dog out. I have also met some friends there so we now go not just for my dog.

My problem is that some people insist on bringing their young kids with them. Many of the kids are "untrained" as to how to behave in a dog park. I always leave because the kids are always running after the dogs. Now, I don't blame the kids for this behavior, I blame their parents. I just think that kids need to be taught "dog manners" just as they are taught everything else. First off, the dog park just is not the place for young children. No joke, the other week, a young parent brought in their kid who was less than 2 and let him run after the dogs. NOT SAFE!!

You can't chase my dog with a large stick (which has happened) or run up to her making loud noises and not expect her to be scared. I think that the unfortunate thing is that if a child should get bit (teagan hasnt bitten anyone) the dog would be blamed and possibly put down and it would totally not be the dogs fault.

Now when someone brings a child in and the child stands besides the parents and my dog is simply scared, unprovoked by the kid, I understand that that is totally my responsibility to take the dog elsewhere.

sorry! just blowing off some steam. It's just one of my big pet peeves.

[MrsRottie]

I can only agree and sympathise - although we don't have specific 'dog parks' over here (and why not I would like to know - sounds like a fab idea!)

I either get kids being dragged off by their parents with "Don't stroke that dog, he'll bite" (my rottie) or the opposite - there's a strange dog, lets go and jump all over him!

I have no shame in shouting either at the parents or the kids. Let them think she may bite - at least then they'll stay away...

I did find a kids quiz on the UK Kennel Club sight - I appreciate you can't make the kids in the park do it, but with you being a teacher maybe you could start a new trend of how to treat a dog classes! LOL Only joking - I'm sure you have too much to do already. But I made my kids do it. My son had a close shave when he went to stroke a GS that wasn't socialised at all. (why it was in a public place I'll never know...) but he appreciates that it was his fault that the dog nearly bit him - he now has a LOT more respect.

[keeks62]

the dog quiz thing is a great idea! I did a quick search of the site, and couldnt' find it, though. I would love to look at it. do you have a link? I'm just glad that I'm not the only person who feels this way about dog parks and the like.

[spotter]

I can only agree and sympathise - although we don't have specific 'dog parks' over here (and why not I would like to know - sounds like a fab idea!)



i agree, sounds excellent.

[adb25]

We are trying to get a dog park in south bend indiana and this is one of the issues that we have to address. Most dog parks in indiana and michigan do not allow kids under the age of 12. This is because of the lack of parents controlling their kids and kids running around can cause the dogs to get aggressive. I would approach the parents and point out the issue to them in a nice way, or approch the parks officials and let them know that this has become an issue. If you are bothered by it, chances are so are more people.

[Taeric]

I agree with everyone - just as it is our responsibility to control our dogs in the parks, it is the responsibility of parents to control their kids. Dog parks do not work if people do not take responsibility of their own. Fortunately, most people who frequent dog parks do a reasonable job, making them a great place for everyone.

[keeks62]

I like the idea of not allowing kids under 12 into the park. I will suggest that to the park officials. I know a lot of my friends are bothered by this as well. Thanks for the great suggestions!

[MaryGrace]

Good idea. I am 11, and I don't go up to strange dogs without asking the owners first. :)

[keeks62]

That's good to hear, someone taught you well! I'll bet you don't chase them with sticks, either :) . Don't get me wrong, I do not mind well behaved kids at the park. (I also like kids, i am a 3rd grade teacher.)

Actually, I think my dog had a breakthrough today. I went to the park and there was an around 7 year old child there not being watched by her grandmother. At first I was like "Oh, no", but I tried not to relay that to my dog. The girl didn't seem to be disrupting any of the dogs. I let my dog off the leash, as always and let her play. She was actually FINE!!

Teagan was very curious about the little girl (of course, the only dog paying any mind to the kid). The girl totally ignored her, which was perfect. She was putting leaves and grass in a hole and mixing it around with a stick.

When she put it down, teagan gingerly walked up and stole the stick away- which the girl ignored. The girl continued to put stuff in the hole she had dug. When she walked away from it, Teagan walked up to the hole and pawed at its contents.

Then, teagan followed her around the park as the girl collected her stuff and continued to ignore her.

I was SO proud of her (my dog). This incident taught me a very important lesson. Teagan isn't afraid of all children. This girl was totally non-threatening to her (didn't try to pet her, didn't engage her in any way) and Teagan was perfectly fine. She only reacts when the children are unpredictable. (something that i wasn't too sure of).

I did contact the park people and they said that we needed to "self-police" ourselves, meaning talk to any offenders of the child rule. My friends and I also thought that it would be a good idea to post a clear sign by the entrance informing people of the rule and that perhaps the dog park is not the best place for their young children.

I know, it's a long post, but I was very happy with my dog today!

[rjdmtb]

Here in Arizona a lot of the dog parks have an age limit on them. Which is a great idea in my opinion. The dogs owner is NOT responsible if little kids get knocked down or pounced on by dogs. Its a dog park for petes sake, they need to take their kids to the playground not the dogpark. But from the parks that I have been to before with an age limit, there isn't any problems.

[Zoes_mama]

We don't have any official dog parks in my town. There is a little park-like place in the woods though. Has a bunch of trails, has a huge creek running through it. It's meant for biking, walking, etc. But everyone brings their dogs and children there. Ppl let their dogs off leash. I've never encountered any misbehaving kids, thank God. Bear would flip out. He's kid-shy. But Zoe adores children. She's so well-behaved with them. A lot of the times kids will pet her. But then, quite a few kids are afraid of her, and her halti only makes it worse. For some reason, a lot of ppl think it's a muzzle and think she's aggressive. I get really offended on Zoe's part when a parent pulls their kid away, give me this look and say things like "Don't go near it, she'll bite" or "See the muzzle? She's not friendly" :( I understand they're just being cautious, though. I wish we had a real dog park here. It'd just be nice to let Zoe go run around free for once.

[Scotia]

I agree 100%, children can behave really badly around dogs. And you're right, if there was a bite, the dog would be blamed. I don't take my children aged 4 and 6 to the dog park, not because they're not well behaved around dogs ( they are, they've been "trained" since they were little :) ) but because I'm not sure about other dogs around them. I'd rather be safe than sorry in both cases.

Scotia

[mysterydog1]

we don't have any dog parks aorund us. but there is this open field on grass and a little pond the labs enjoy. but not having an official dog park with rules has become a problem for some. not because of small kids, but because of this one lady.
she takes her dog out there and lets it off the leash and goes walking. the dog however will pounce on and kill everything it could get its paws on! i haven't seen the dog but our friends have and the say its like a pit bull type dog, and that dog isn't making a very good example of how loving their breed can be.
our friends have a stray dog and it is rumored he is part cyote, (he seriously looks like a wolf!) but he plays kind of rough (wrestling with their other dog) but is all over good with kids and other dogs. then this lady's dog comes and like totally attacks Cedar (the wolf lookin one) and they get into a fight.
cedar's family couldn't stop it because the other dog was so vicious but finally the lady comes over(it took a while becuese she is kinda really fat) and gets her dog off of cedar and starts yelling at cedar's family!
it was totally her dog's fault! but now they just don't go over there when they see she is there.

[Lynn]

Around here I rarely take Tikaani to the dog parks because of problems we have, including but not limited to, children. One of our parks is ranked 9th in the Nation for best park and unless you go early in the morning, it gets crazy full of people. Though it's not the only park that has problem, people around here have uncontrollable dogs that they let loose and little children that go mad. At one of the dog parks here a few weeks ago, a guy brought his little 6-ish yr old girl with him and the park is infamous for being full of tempermental pitts (don't get me wrong...not classifying the dogs...but most of the dog owners do have pits and they have BAD socialization) and the little girl was being an absolute snot. She was picking up rocks and sticks and throwing them at the dogs that were running by playing w/ each other. She hit one square in the nose and the dog turned and ran at her. He didn't bite her but he headbutted her VERY hard, sent her sprawling. Next thing anyone knows the guy is kicking the dog as hard as he can. Now there's a big lawsuit over who's at fault.

Luckily in the Springs there are several places that aren't "dog parks" that people go and let their dogs off-leash and go walking on the trails so that's where Tikaani and I go now b/c there's a big resevoir there that she likes to wade in (AND NO KIDS!)

[s4m222]

if a dog is properly socialized it should not be dangeruos for a kid to run around... it might be dangerous for the dog if the kid throws sticks or rocks... but if all the dogs were socialized well its should not be a danger to kids, even babies..

though i doubt every single owner at a dog park has a perfectly socialized and pay close attention to there dogs... sooo babies should be watched closely.. and other dogs closely as wel...

[AnimalHouse]

YEa I do spend.. .Well Spent alot of time at the dog park at one point, the one I went to first was great for a year or so then went down hill, Dogs were biting,and fighting, so I went to another, where i found that people were bringing there freashly groomed standard poodles, and Yelling at any dog that came near em to play.. which i thought was ridiculas.. *Sp* And the one i go to now, is NEW only been here MAYBE 3 mo.. and it is NICE.. only one person I member that brought a dog that didnt belong.. But there is very limited children that come in.. Even tho the one that do are older.. But the one day I member was there were 3 older boys.. prolly about 8 or so.. maybe 10.. And they were jumping all ovedr the equipment *there is agility equipment there hand made by someone and donated to the park * and I finally said I am sorry I dont feel you guys need to be in here breaking the equipment that the dogs play on.. and I said i am sure u wouldnt want a dog coming in and chewing on ure toys,and breaking them would u? And they looked at me,and said sorry,and then they stoped.. hahaha I know a weird way to approach it.. But when i kept hearing people with the oooh and ahhs.. I just couldnt sit there and let it happen anymore.. Soo I guess. the meaning to this story is, Some kids arent tought what is right and wrong.. and you have to say something to get it to stop.. good luck!

[LoveThatPom]

Dog park = park for dogs
Playground = place for kids

As the owner of a small dog, I can appreciate the frustration over people not teaching their children how to approach a dog. Children need to know that they cannot just pet or play with a dog, they need permission from the owner. I completely advocate dog parks implementing an age restriction. This would make things safer for both children and dogs, as well as parents and owners. Just think if you took your large, unpredictable dog to a children's playground-- people would throw a fit!

[mysterydog1]

Yes, yet some kids know how to act around dogs. but most do not. So maybe there should be a rule that only nice dogs can go to the dog park. Like if someone brought a former(or current) fighting dog to a dog park and stired things up. I don't think people with nice dogs would like that. and then by ruleing out poorly socialized dogs it may be ok to have kids in the dog park, like 10+ i know when i was little i was never taught how to behave around dogs, that is nobody had to teach me. I treated them with respect (even more respect than humans i think :P) I was around 8 years old. If I wasn't allowed in the dog park, thats people saying all kids are the same and are hyper monsters. but still in the most part, little hyper kids= just don't take them to the dog park.

If some little brat was throwing rocks and sticks at Oakley, i wouldn't giver her the chance to go head butt the tiny devil. I'd go right up the the kid's parents and say "why don't you put that leash you're not using on your kid!" no i wouldn't say that but i would say to keep the kid in control please, or i'd go to the park manager person or something and ask him to ask the person and child to leave. =)

[Lynn]

but no other individual has any position to deem a dog "ok" or "not ok" for a park. You can't just make a rule that says "mean don't can't come here" b/c all h**l would break loose by uptight owners claiming that someone's dog who just so much as SNIFFED there was "unruly" or "out of control". Some people just have their pantyhose in a bunch. The rule that MOST dogparks have is that you must be in control of your dog at all times or they must be under verbal commands. In other words, YOU and ONLY YOU are the one that should deem if your dog should be there or not unless for some reason the city defines your dog as an "endangerment to society"...in that case, dogs that are allowed to live beyond that are generally required to be muzzled in public.
Hundreds of dogs are put to sleep everyday for so many reasons...inbreeding, health, temperment, specific breeds, and often just b/c they are populating too quickly....I think humans are breeding too quickly...nevermind...I won't take that thought any further *LMAO!*

[LabMum]

her halti only makes it worse. For some reason, a lot of ppl think it's a muzzle and think she's aggressive. I get really offended on Zoe's part when a parent pulls their kid away, give me this look and say things like "Don't go near it, she'll bite" or "See the muzzle? She's not friendly" :(

I know exactly what you mean Zoes_mama!! Alfie & Charlie both wear halti's and people seem to cross the road to avoid us! They are two of the friendliest dogs you could meet, they wear them because it stops them pulling on their lead and it doesn't hurt them like a choke chain does. People are so judgemental. We were out walking a few days ago and this lady was walking towards us, her daughter had a little bischon friese, and she started screaming at the top of her voice for her daughter to get it away from the "vicious dogs". It drives me mad!!!!:mad: I'm more likely to bite than they are!! Just kidding!

[mysterydog1]

yeah halti's look like muzzkes to me. but i thought dogs couldn't wear certain tpyes of muzzles for more than 20 mins. so they can like take big greaths of air and stuff.

[mysterydog1]

but no other individual has any position to deem a dog "ok" or "not ok" for a park. You can't just make a rule that says "mean don't can't come here" b/c all h**l would break loose by uptight owners claiming that someone's dog who just so much as SNIFFED there was "unruly" or "out of control". Some people just have their pantyhose in a bunch. The rule that MOST dogparks have is that you must be in control of your dog at all times or they must be under verbal commands. In other words, YOU and ONLY YOU are the one that should deem if your dog should be there or not unless for some reason the city defines your dog as an "endangerment to society"...in that case, dogs that are allowed to live beyond that are generally required to be muzzled in public.
Hundreds of dogs are put to sleep everyday for so many reasons...inbreeding, health, temperment, specific breeds, and often just b/c they are populating too quickly....I think humans are breeding too quickly...nevermind...I won't take that thought any further *LMAO!*
:skull: thank you for putting that so strongly..... it was just my humble opinion :thumbsdownsmileyani
what does lmao mean?

[Lynn]

lmao - laugh my *word omitted* off

[Zoes_mama]

yeah halti's look like muzzkes to me. but i thought dogs couldn't wear certain tpyes of muzzles for more than 20 mins. so they can like take big greaths of air and stuff.

I'm sorry, but I just think there is no mistaking a halti and a muzzle. If people payed a bit more attention, they'd see the difference.
Halti - dog can pant/eat/drink/bark freely and is happy. Not much restriction.
http://www.doctordog.com/merchant2/graphics/00000001/coastal/halti.jpg
Muzzle - dog is restricted in every which way.
http://www.cityofboston.gov/animalcontrol/images/muzzle.jpg
Zoe actually has this muzzle
http://www.neopaws.com/catalog/images/prod_extras/muzzle.jpg
But I never use it anymore. It was bought just so we could have her around the cats without worrying. But we realized that made it worse.

labsmum, that makes me furious. Silly people! But w/e. Their loss right? They're just ignorant.

[Pocono]

We are trying to get a dog park in south bend indiana and this is one of the issues that we have to address. Most dog parks in indiana and michigan do not allow kids under the age of 12. This is because of the lack of parents controlling their kids and kids running around can cause the dogs to get aggressive. I would approach the parents and point out the issue to them in a nice way, or approch the parks officials and let them know that this has become an issue. If you are bothered by it, chances are so are more people.

You should find out if Nascar driver Ryan Newman may be able to help get a dog park in South Bend. That is where he is from and he loves doing things for dogs.