Super Important Safety Tips for the Dog Park

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Dog parks can be great places for your pups to get some exercise and meet friends, but there are important safety tips to keep in mind before venturing in.

I take my dogs to the dog park at the beach almost every day! They LOVE to go there, and usually when we start getting close Benson just simply cannot contain himself any longer and the wrestle is on!! Grace just wants to get there though and can get a bit uppity with the big guy…This usually results in a LOT of comments and laughter on the boardwalk…I think one day it took me about twenty minutes to walk ten feet!

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The dog park that we go to is HUGE and right on the water. There is a smaller area for smaller dogs and a really large area for everyone. This is where Grace learned to swim!! And in the winter the entire beach south of the snow fence is off leash which makes for a great time!

Vaccinations

Grace went to the beach to be off leash for the first time after she had all her shots. It is VERY important to make sure your puppy has all it’s shots before making the plunge as there is a very real risk of illness. Make sure to keep your pet up to date on vaccines as well as they can encounter many different viruses and parasites at the park. Check out the Blue Cross Animal Hospital’s vaccination schedule for your puppy here.

Recall

I was REALLY nervous about taking Grace off her leash the first time! She was about four and a half months old and her recall was still very much a work in progress! Also, as the snow fences have many openings I was a bit worried that she would run off and through to the great big world beyond. There are no roads close to it though, so I decided to give it a go! And guess what…she did GREAT! She even met another Bernese!

Recall is a very important part of a great off leash experience with your dog! I had taken Grace to puppy classes already and she was very good with the “touch” command and this was a great opportunity to test it out with her. Recall can keep your dog close to you if there are any gaps in fencing. It is also a way to get your dog out of what could potentially be a dangerous situation.

Benson does great at the dog park as well! He had a few run ins though before he was neutered, and he was a bit leery of a certain dog walker and his crew. It made his experience not so great for a while but I still wanted to make sure he was socialized and did not get fearful so we found times to go when there were better behaved dogs in the park.

Aggressive Dogs

Fights can definitely happen, even with the best behaved dogs. Benson was being picked on quite frequently and when he started getting reactive to dogs that took issue with him we quit going. I did not want him hurting a smaller dog or risk having him get injured.

Picking the right time of the day can make a big difference in your experience. Early in the morning and after work are times when you will get dogs with their owners and I find the dogs are generally better behaved. During the day you may run into dog walkers with big groups of dogs that may be less well behaved.

Look and Listen

Before I go into the dog park I generally take a good look ahead of time and also listen for any issues. The day Benson was attacked badly I could hear the dogs coming into the dog park with the dog walker and there was a lot of nervous energy in that group…There can also be owners who are inattentive or dismiss their dog’s behaviour which you want to stay away from.

Also, if there is a fight DO NOT try to get between the dogs. You could get seriously hurt!! Try other things first like throwing water on the dogs or distracting them somehow. When it happened to Benson it was a very scary experience, and the dog walker ended up having to rip the other dog off him. I was running and screaming, and it had only been a mere few seconds but it was like time stood still until I made sure he was ok!

Injuries

Even with play there is the potential for injuries at a dog park. Make sure that you are familiar with vets in the area in case of an emergency. I also carry a small bag with a few things such as bandages in it just in case I need to act quickly before we get to the vet. Grace has also cut her foot at the park and a bandage wrap is a good way to treat the wound initially until you can get further treatment from a vet.

Know Your Dog Park

Make sure you are familiar with the park’s fencing and boundaries. The park I go to has fencing but it does not go all the way down to the water so there are some routes of escape. I have seen more than one owner have to go chase down their dog when they discovered their freedom!! This is also where good recall comes into play!

Know Your Dog

You also know your dog better than anyone else! A shy or nervous dog should not go into a dog park as it can lead to aggression. I find it is a great way to socialize my dogs and let them burn off some energy! Grace also loves to paddle around in the lake…Benson? Not so much, the only time he actually swam was when he fell into the water and had no choice! It was not a pretty dog paddle…

Dogs with guarding issues, whether it be related to either food or toys, should also not go into a dog park. Frequently there are owners throwing toys for their dogs so everyone should be good with sharing. Also, many dog owners carry dog treats with them.

I have also disbelievingly seen people without dogs set up tents and picnics in the dog park…Last summer Grace crashed one such tent and caused a significant amount of destruction…I stood there in disbelief when the people actually got mad at ME…For having a dog off leash…in an OFF LEASH dog park that they would to have gone through not one but TWO gates to get into…Then there was that one time the owners of a food guarding bulldog brought a marrow bone into the park…I am sure you can imagine how well that went…

Dog Park Etiquette

This is a natural lead-in to dog park etiquette! ALWAYS pick up after your dog. A couple weeks ago as I was heading over to pick up a gift from Grace (always as far away from me as possible) I stepped in a pile left behind by another dog. Super annoying.

Make sure your dog is well behaved with other dogs. Disagreements are bound to happen sometimes even yet. But if your dog and the other dogs are properly socialized it should keep them to a minimum.

DON’T bring females in heat to the dog park! Just don’t. It can cause fights between male dogs. Which we just don’t want to happen.

Small Children

I see a lot of parents bring small children into the dog park as well. This is all well and great but you need to be aware that there are dogs of all size and temperament in the dog park. My dogs are rather large and can easily knock over a small child which puts them at risk for injury. They don’t mean to but they are big clumsy oafs at times!

Know When To Leave

If you notice that your dog is not behaving well, you may need to leash them and leave the dog park. I see so many people with dogs that are not in control or aggressive laugh it off and downplay it and allow the behaviour to continue. (Queue up the “they’ve never done that before” response). However, I have also seen just as many owners do the responsible thing. I have had to leash mine more than once and that is typically when we move on.

It is actually almost time for us to head down to the dog park for the second time today!! The exercise and socialization does a great job of tiring my dogs right out! It has also taught them so much about interacting with other dogs and people. Grace loves to play and swim but will also plant her big wet bottom on someone’s feet for a rub! Dog parks can and should be a great experience for everyone!

Time to go rub some puppies…

Thinking about taking your pup to the dog park? Be sure to pick up the supplies you will need: