More Stupidity And Selfishness In Local Dog Park

[Tilly]

I would have thought that the greyhounds should have been wearing muzzles? isn't it illegal to have greyhounds in a public place without muzzles?

Not all greyhounds ... GAP greyhounds wearing their green collar don't need to wear a muzzle in public.

[GardenofEden]

I would have thought that the greyhounds should have been wearing muzzles? isn't it illegal to have greyhounds in a public place without muzzles?

Not all greyhounds ... GAP greyhounds wearing their green collar don't need to wear a muzzle in public.

Oh okay, thanks Tilly. I'd love to know if these GH were wearing their green collar?

[mita]

Worse than this was the death of a poodle in the same park 2 weeks before by a "labrador". I hope it's not the dear little mite that I have seen there with his elderly owner.

It was folllowing deaths of small dogs in some dog parks, that led the Brisbane City Council to fence off a section for small dogs only.

Then, if there's any rumbles, it's between similar size dogs.

[corvus]

I don't know what we would do without dog parks. Our yard isn't big enough for the wild games our dogs like to play. With that in mind we socialised both of them to the madness of dog parks from an early age. They are used to it and are not bothered by the craziness. They know that not every dog is friendly and judge it better than I can. We pick our parks carefully and are always prepared to leave if we don't feel comfortable. I've only left twice.

[CBL]

I would have thought that the greyhounds should have been wearing muzzles? isn't it illegal to have greyhounds in a public place without muzzles?

Not all greyhounds ... GAP greyhounds wearing their green collar don't need to wear a muzzle in public.

This is only in some states - not NSW - they still must all be muzzled.

As a greyhound owner I am especially devastated by this event What hope do we in NSW have of getting the laws changed if idiots like this are so irresponsible ?

[mita]

As a greyhound owner I am especially devastated by this event What hope do we in NSW have of getting the laws changed if idiots like this are so irresponsible ?

Agree! By coincidence, I was just talking to the greyhound owner at the back, about how his grey girl, Princess (sister to a Qld sprint champ) is so good at reassuring small dogs she meets.

When our new tibbie arrived some months back (unused to big dogs), she got a fright when Pirncess trotted up to the fence. Immediately, Princess went into a play bow & all was well. These 2 are now the closest of friends.

The owner said Princess did the same thing when they came upon a small dog out walking. The little dog yelped with fright....& Princess went down into her play bow.

[Levi]

I take my Shelties to the dog park every day but only because it has a separate small dog area. We have been going for about three months and the number of dogs has increased dramatically in that time. The reason for this is that people's small dogs were getting hurt and a few were killed in dog parks that run all sizes together .

When I look over at the large dog area I just cringe. The lack of control and poor social skills displayed by most dogs in there is downright frightening .

There are a number of regulars in our small dog area and if a dog enters that we think is too large, too rough, or aggressive, they are asked to leave or put the dog on lead (or everyone else will put their dog on lead and move away so the owner of the problem dog becomes uncomfortable and leaves ).

This might sound dictatorial or harsh but there are rules at dog parks and if the users don't enforce them then nobody will. I understand that this is not always possible for people to do, but as we have the support of a group, luckily we can do it. The council is never there to make sure dogs are under control or not menacing other dogs and the safety and wellfare of our dogs is our priority.

[GardenofEden]

I take my Shelties to the dog park every day but only because it has a separate small dog area. We have been going for about three months and the number of dogs has increased dramatically in that time. The reason for this is that people's small dogs were getting hurt and a few were killed in dog parks that run all sizes together .

When I look over at the large dog area I just cringe. The lack of control and poor social skills displayed by most dogs in there is downright frightening .

There are a number of regulars in our small dog area and if a dog enters that we think is too large, too rough, or aggressive, they are asked to leave or put the dog on lead (or everyone else will put their dog on lead and move away so the owner of the problem dog becomes uncomfortable and leaves ).

This might sound dictatorial or harsh but there are rules at dog parks and if the users don't enforce them then nobody will. I understand that this is not always possible for people to do, but as we have the support of a group, luckily we can do it. The council is never there to make sure dogs are under control or not menacing other dogs and the safety and wellfare of our dogs is our priority.

Breath of fresh air to find that some people have the balls to tell bigger dog owners to either leave or put their dogs on leashes. It really saddens me that so many dogs are losing their lives in parks; what is meant to be a fun outing turns out to be such a grim fate. History will keep on repeating itself unfortunately, there always will be people that have no sense of responsibility.

Edited May 23, 2010 by GardenofEden

[GardenofEden]

As a greyhound owner I am especially devastated by this event What hope do we in NSW have of getting the laws changed if idiots like this are so irresponsible ?

Agree! By coincidence, I was just talking to the greyhound owner at the back, about how his grey girl, Princess (sister to a Qld sprint champ) is so good at reassuring small dogs she meets.

When our new tibbie arrived some months back (unused to big dogs), she got a fright when Pirncess trotted up to the fence. Immediately, Princess went into a play bow & all was well. These 2 are now the closest of friends.

The owner said Princess did the same thing when they came upon a small dog out walking. The little dog yelped with fright....& Princess went down into her play bow.

Beautiful story. Sounds like Princess really deserves to be treated as such. What a honey!

[Longdog]

As a greyhound owner I am especially devastated by this event What hope do we in NSW have of getting the laws changed if idiots like this are so irresponsible ?

Agree! By coincidence, I was just talking to the greyhound owner at the back, about how his grey girl, Princess (sister to a Qld sprint champ) is so good at reassuring small dogs she meets.

When our new tibbie arrived some months back (unused to big dogs), she got a fright when Pirncess trotted up to the fence. Immediately, Princess went into a play bow & all was well. These 2 are now the closest of friends.

The owner said Princess did the same thing when they came upon a small dog out walking. The little dog yelped with fright....& Princess went down into her play bow.

Oh that is so sweet! I love the expression. I now recognise I have actually seen big dogs do this "bow" to my little dog when meeting and greeting! Yep, I say she lives up to her name.

[furballs]

I only go in if there is noone else there and am vigilant about other dogs coming in - I go every few months. Couldn't go in today as there were two large staffs in there - my dogs are too precious.

Dog parks are so very dangerous.

I rarely go to dogs parks now and when I do it's the least busy time and I keep to one end away from other dogs. They just aren't any fun these days The dogs have more fun running around the backyard safely together.

Have you ever been to Riverside Gardens in Bayswater, most people are regulars and I've rarely seen aggressiveness between dogs down there.

[Odin-Genie]

The owners of the greys said "You should have come and checked with us before you let your dog off lead". I mean honestly, WTF??? They should not have greys in an off leash park and should have yelled, gotten their dogs on a lead and left, but no, they've got to blame the innocent party.

suit on

You would not catch me dead at a dog park with any of my kids. That said, I have been in a situation at a dog obedience club where my 2 Salukis, a friend's 2 Salukis, and 2 Afghan Hounds were running together in the back paddock. Someone with a Cav rocked up and calmly entered the gate and was about to let their dog off when I and the other woman ran towards her with waving arms yelling NO NO NO. If we hadn't spotted her entering it could have been a disaster. And we only spotted her entering because nothing else was going on at the time.

I can see how someone might get in the gate, be naive enough to think that any dog in a dog park is OK, and wind up in trouble. And I can see why the guys owning the greyhounds would have thought the person owning the small dog was nuts to let their dog off in a park with two unmuzzled greys. FWIW, muzzling solves some problems but not others - a powerful sighthound can still soccer a small dog into a serious injury even if muzzled.

I think it is the responsibility of a person entering any space with their dogs to check that it is OK for their dog. But there have been a few arguments on DOL recently about where the buck stops, and from my perspective, it stops with me. I would no more release a small dog into a park with running greys than I would fly to the moon. OTOH, I would no more take my dogs to a dog park than fly to the moon either. I suppose I'm just saying I can see why this clusterf*** occurred and it's a good example of why ultimately I agree with you, that dog parks are dangerous.

If I had a dog who was DA or had a high prey drive and was likely to harm other dogs, I would take him to dogparks only when no one was there and then position myself at the gates (with OH near the other gate) to ensure we can grab our dogs before any other dogs come in. I do this anyway when I take my dogs to the dogpark when it's dark in winters to ensure no strange dogs come in. If anyone comes in we ask them to wait while we put our dogs on lead and take them out. As a public place, I don't think each person should have to check with others before coming in. We might do that for the dafety of our dogs, but the responsibility should rest with the possibly aggressive dogs' owners.

[Odin-Genie]

In our local paper, there was a story about a Mother's Day incident at a local dog park.

Dogmad, I go to this dogpark once in a while and it's usually quite empty. However, after seeing the notice on the gates about this incident, I'm a bit vary.

[W Sibs]

oh, i hope the little dog is ok.

i'm not a fan of fenced dog parks... I've seen too many incident at fence dog parks. i will only go in them if the place is near empty.

the dog park i go to, it's open and big... so there is plenty room for everyone. charlie doesn't play with dogs often, but likes going down there to watch other dogs or often just say hello and then continue his merry way. we rarely stay in one place at parks too and take a very small stroll around the park off leash. charlie doesn't cause trouble.. he will rarely approach a dog first. dogs that approach him usually are respectful.. although there has been time where the boyfriend or i have to stand in front of charlie to distract them till they calm down to meet charlie.

haven't taken Emmy yet... but she's a lunatic, so she won't go down there till she settles down more.

Edited May 24, 2010 by CW EW

[percyk]

awfylly scary incident

and reflects things i have seen myself with sighthounds in dog parks

i love sighthounds

but they are not suited for dog parks for the most

muzzled or not

i have had my comments removed from the 101 breeds

on greyhounds yet what soaring magpie says here is what i was talking about

get a pair of sighthounds out there in a dogpark and you dont know what can set them off

i doubt any owner could read the signals and noone can call a sighthound off midflight

ill stick by my words over and over...

nothing to do with bashing them

cos im all in favour of rehoming them

but i really dont know that much can be done about their huge need for chasing and certainly they are known to have very poor recall

i dont know anyone who trusts their sighthound completely...with their smaller dogs at home or strange dogs out in the open

i wouldnt take the chance

poor things...so very few places they can take a run

if it's not chasing little dogs and cats...then its the danger they place themselves with their galloping that gets them under a car

i guess the only safe place for greys to go for a run is endless stretches of wild beach away from roads

not too many people have access to that so i guess leadwalking is the only way these dogs get to exercise...shame when theyre built to run

do hope the little dog gets better..poor tyke

[Adnil444]

This is awful, I hope the guy and his dog were ok. I haven't experienced many aggressive dogs where I go but people tend to band together and tell people with aggressive dogs to leave. This is the kind of story that makes uneducated people think that a breed is aggressive, which is so wrong. My Rottweiler got bailed up by a chi at our dog park and she didn't know what to do... :D Moral of the story though is if that chi had carried on like that with an aggressive dog things would have gotten nasty. Dogs of ALL sizes should be controlled to avoid these situations. And some dog owners, well I can't say what I really think of some people on this forum, suffice to say that some people should be desexed at a young age.

Agree totally with you. My RottiexDobe is pretty good with most dogs except the little ones that aggressively come and go for her for no reason. I have been lobbying the council to have the dog park segregated into small and large dog areas - no luck yet but will keep trying. I am amazed at the amount of small dogs owners who do absolutely nothing that their little "treasures" aggressively go for the bigger dogs and then get all upset and abusive if the larger dogs go back at them. There is no rule for small dogs and large dogs, the rules are the same. If the little dogs are going to be aggressive to other dogs in the park, then don't bring them in.

In this instance I feel very sorry for this little dog an I hope he is ok (as well as the owner). The owner of the greyhounds should be made accountable for his dogs' actions and he should be fined/banned from going into a dog park again and his dogs should be muzzled.

[Adnil444]

I take my Shelties to the dog park every day but only because it has a separate small dog area. We have been going for about three months and the number of dogs has increased dramatically in that time. The reason for this is that people's small dogs were getting hurt and a few were killed in dog parks that run all sizes together .

When I look over at the large dog area I just cringe. The lack of control and poor social skills displayed by most dogs in there is downright frightening :D .

There are a number of regulars in our small dog area and if a dog enters that we think is too large, too rough, or aggressive, they are asked to leave or put the dog on lead (or everyone else will put their dog on lead and move away so the owner of the problem dog becomes uncomfortable and leaves ).

This might sound dictatorial or harsh but there are rules at dog parks and if the users don't enforce them then nobody will. I understand that this is not always possible for people to do, but as we have the support of a group, luckily we can do it. The council is never there to make sure dogs are under control or not menacing other dogs and the safety and wellfare of our dogs is our priority.

Good on you - I have been lobbying our council to make some parks or segregate the ones into small and bigger dog ones. Most issues at dog parks would be resolved - though not all. I agree, the amount if either ignorant or just rude people with their dogs amazes me. It just makes sense to have separate areas for the small ones (even in play they can be injured), and an area for the larger ones.

[Adnil444]

In our local paper, there was a story about a Mother's Day incident at a local dog park. A little dog I have seen when I go there, who is tiny and completely inoffensive, just happily plays ball with his owners and goes home, was attacked by two greyhounds who rushed him from the other end of the park. They were not muzzled, as is required by law but worse than that, was the attititude of the owners.

Dog parks are so very dangerous.

Hi, can I ask which dog park this happened at - I live in Sydney's north and want to avoid this one.

[Odin-Genie]

In our local paper, there was a story about a Mother's Day incident at a local dog park. A little dog I have seen when I go there, who is tiny and completely inoffensive, just happily plays ball with his owners and goes home, was attacked by two greyhounds who rushed him from the other end of the park. They were not muzzled, as is required by law but worse than that, was the attititude of the owners.

Dog parks are so very dangerous.

Hi, can I ask which dog park this happened at - I live in Sydney's north and want to avoid this one.

This is the Thornleigh dog park on Dawson Avenue, behind Woolworths. It's a comparatively new dog park. Very clean, well maintained and usually not very busy. Which is why I initially started taking my dogs there. Now, if I see anyone with two greys, I'll leave.

[Agility Dogs]

Dog parks - uggh.......

I won't go near them for the simple reason that too many people just don't understand their dog's behaviour and my boy won't put up with badly behaved dogs. He was monstered as a puppy (yes, my fault when I had no clue) and decided that he needed to protect himself. It took me 2 years to get him over the stage of needing to be proactive with that. Now he looks to me before disciplining another dog. (So he doesn't ever get the chance to do it.)

He is well socialised and is constantly around other dogs at agility and flyball, but doesn't like to play and lets other dogs know that. Occasionally if he meets a rude dog and I'm not by his side they get told off, quickly, harshly, but fairly and then it is all over. Some owners just don't get this and its not worth putting him in harms way just because of that. (A rude dog is one that runs up and immediately feels the need to grab his collar or play rough.)

I'll probably get flamed, but we go down to the local football or cricket ovals and train just about every morning. Only VERY occasionally are we bothered by a dog from an inconsiderate owner who is treating the area like their own off lead paddock. One of mine is always tethered and the other is completely focussed on the job at hand and never go near anyone else.

If people turn up to use the field we move on.

Wrong - maybe. Putting my dogs at risk? Definitely not.