Dog Park Etiquette: Are you really a dog park person?
There are dog parks with small/shy dog areas. There are even some in the Seattle Grandview
If you, as an owner, are made nervous by my Beagle coming to meet and play with your dog, perhaps, just perhaps, you should not be at the dog park.
Some people aren’t dog park people, and there’s nothing wrong with that, until they come to the dog park and don’t know how to act. There’s giant signs at the entrance that warn people this is an off leash park, and that if they aren’t comfortable with loose dogs running up to them and their dogs, then perhaps they shouldn’t be here. (This is the same sign that reminds owners to pick up after their dogs, so I know people don’t read it/choose to ignore it, but still.)
Twice, recently, we’ve had owners freak out when June has gone up to thei dogs to play. Admittedly, both dogs have been smaller than June, but Beagles aren’t exactly known for being dangerous dogs.
In the first instance, the other dog was an adorable black toy Poodle. She and June started playing chase, with June doing the chasing. The poodle easily kept ahead of June, and its little tail was wagging. The owner proceeded to scoop it up and tell us that the dog gets nervous.
Well, unless her dog’s cues are different from other dog cues, someone was nervous, but it wasn’t the poodle.
Now, if you’ve been to a dog park, you might also have noticed the phenomenon that is “a carried dog is a fascinating dog”. Something about a dog being held by a person makes them more interesting to other dogs. And to make matters worse, this woman had a hand full of treats.
She picked up her dog and walked away. June followed her. (Are we surprised?)
Now, I will admit that we have not worked on June’s recall as much as we should, but Beagles aren’t the most listeny of dogs under the best circumstances. When presented with a dog being carried and a handful of treats, we stood no chance.
We had to follow the woman all the way across the soccer field before we could get her to stop long enough for us to catch up and put June on leash so that she could be led away.
In the second instance, the other dog was a mini Dachshund, who desperately wanted to be the one chasing June. Problem was, the Dachshund was on leash. And that leash was being held by a little girl, maybe 10 or so. Even mini Dachshunds can pull a child along if their not expecting it.
The child got nervous, pulled her dog in and picked it up. Her dog, of course, still wanted to play and kept barking at June. We had to pick up June and carry her away.
In neither case did any dog behave inappropriately. They wanted to play and have fun. Nervous owners (and I am sympathetic to the kid, but her parents should have been nearer by and considered whether this was really the place they wanted to be) created the issues in their own minds.
So please, if you are not comfortable with other dogs coming up to your dog to sniff and play, don’t come to a dog park, or at least stick to the small/shy dogs areas at parks that have them. I mean, if my Beagle makes you nervous, how are you going to react to the bigger dogs?