We used to have puppy play dates in my backyard w several of the neighbors’ dogs, but oh, my poor grass! It still hasn’t recovered from the trail of dirt they blazed! Worth it, though! Love my dogs and their puppy friends!
I took my dog to the same dog park , that I have been bringing her too for months . She has a reliable recall and heel . However I was not expecting her to meet with an aggressive dog who previously was nice and played well . I do as you should and that's observe your animal playing and interacting . I think it's a shame that so many ppl bring their dog and bury there face in there phones , I would hope that they don't do this with their children. Just like having kids , a dog is family and should be regarded as such . I should never have to pull multiple dogs off of my dog when the other handlers are careless. I just thought I should share
Yes. My sister’s lab was attacked by another dog at the dog park and resulted in high vet bills and a trip to small claims court. My vet has told me that he spends a lot of time dealing with the aftermath of dog parks. There are far too many people that don’t train their dogs and go to the parks to just let them run.
Agreed. My vet said avoid dog parks! We take our 9 month old puppy to remote open spaces to run, sniff, and play or the occasional well structured doggy daycare, or lastly a sniff spot. Many owners think it’s ok to approach without asking or controlling their dog! Especially the small dog owners 🤬
We have been taking our rescues to dog parks for over 10 years. Keep in mind they are huge and I'm very strategic of "when" I go visit them. usually and odd time during the weekdays. I avoid weekends, long weekends, and avoid the first warm day after a -30 winter days. Where dogs have had very little exercise, anxious, pent up energy all recipe for dog scraps. Plus I've noticed the past 4 years since pandemic, the atmosphere and temperments of dogs/owners visiting parks are out of control, rambucious, and have absolutely no manners (not properly or appropriate greetings with other dogs). Plus I spent the last 2 years obtaining my dog training certification among a few others including master course in aggression so I can read dog body language very well and often know which dogs to avoid and walk the other way. Like I say the dog park is about 10 football fields and going in off hours helps me avoid situations like this.
Before I had my dog, I visited the local dog park several times (yes, I was the crazy lady without a dog) and I cringed at the things I saw. I eventually befriended the groundskeeper and he would let us in an hour and a half before the park open to the public, not only did we have the park all to ourselves, and my dog loved herding the ducks off of the soccer fields next to the park and take them to the lake. It was a win-win for everybody. Groundskeeper was grateful for one less thing he had to do :-) needless to say we were both very sad when he retired. By then I had a 100% rock solid recall and we found a nice play we could go to. Later on I found a dog park that is membership only. Yes, is not free but, it gives me the peace of mind that I can rent the place just for us in 30 minutes increments and I don't have to worry about other dogs. They ask for vaccination records there is clinic next door in the event of an emergency and 20% of the fees go to the local animal shelter. While you are there, you have access to the hydrotherapy pool, agility equipment and tennis ball machines if you have a fetch crazy dog and you don't feel like throwing a ball the entire time.
@@user-jb4xv4im9o that is fabulous! I ended up setting one up also in my backyard. I also have the fitpaws equipment to strengthen his core and he loves it. I swear my dog is in better shape than I am :-)
…and doggy day cares can change owners without knowledge: was at a well respected daycare with a friend picking up her kenneled pet where a young pointer was harassing and biting every small dog in the glassed in romp room. All smaller dogs, including a basset, were hiding under the 2 chairs in the room, while the pointer tried to dig and pull out his “prey”! I ran to the desk and told the staff that the dog needed to be removed. I was told it was owners dog… and the guy in the room allowing it to happen was the owner! Very glad I didn’t have a dog there…
Thank you! I’ve seen dogs get hurt in dog parks and only go off hours and carefully. My puppy was almost killed by German Shepherd that “never hurt anyone” before. After a few thousand dollars and vet bills, I learned my lesson-male dogs are threatened by other male dogs, even puppies.
There are so many people that don't understand dogs especially breeds. There are dogs that have high prey drive. It also could have been a dog that was frustrated and redirected his frustration. Many reasons why a dog would do that. Anyways, a great book highly recommended for all dog owners for many reasons is Meet Your Dog by Kim Brophey. Excellent book.
So glad I saw this, I've been thinking more about doggy daycare recently and now I have better information to work with. When I really think about it, my dog is perfectly happy at home and it's just me who feels pressured to make him more 'socially active'. A trusted petsitter seems like a much better option if my goal is to guarantee his comfort and safety while I'm away.
I agree 100% too! Mentally stimulating/tasking your dog can tire your dog just as effectively as physical exercise. I love puzzles and hide and seek things 😊
We brought my dog to dog parks for the first 1-2 years of her life because it was Covid and wanted her to be socialized. Biggest mistake now she has anxiety and immediately submits to anyone or other dogs. We have been working on rebuilding her confidence.
We adopted our dog (3yo) last year, and we've definitely had to adjust our expectations when it comes to dog parks/ day care. We're working with a trainer on his reactivity, but have learned to accept that those places might never be good for him. One thing that really helps us exercise him (besides walks/runs) is a 30ft leash. With that he can just run and sniff his heart out, while we can still safely keep him from other dogs or running away.
Absolutely! I took my Sheltie puppy to obedience class. During break the instructor had everyone take the dogs off a leash to “play”. On two separate occasions she was attacked by other puppies. They were both a hound breed. Katie never got over her fear of other dogs except her adopted brother who was a Sheltie too. She would actually try to be the attacker when she felt threatened. I finally had to disallow other dogs in the house.
Yes, same happened to me when I took my GSD pup to obedience class. He was a very confident pup, the trainer wanted the pups to have a run and play in an enclosure and two staffies just headed for him and pulled him down and attacked him, there was no provocation from my dog. Everybody thought it was funny for two smaller dogs to pull down a bigger dog, except the trainer and myself.
@@saramations They pinned him down and started biting and pulling him, it wasn't puppy play anymore. They were also older than most of the other dogs, but still under one year old.
I’ve had an incredibly positive experience with Doggy Daycare! Our dog loves it. Key, though, is research. The one we use has a high staff to dog ratio. They insist on a trial couple of hours. They have active play areas and quiet areas, and encourage downtime in the afternoon. Dogs are ‘sorted’ according to temperament and energy levels, not just breed or size. Ours has many friends that he’s made and can hardly wait to get in there
Another place that dogs should never enter is a store. I work at a department store as the front end supervisor. Last November a woman brought in her supossed emotional support dog. The dog barked the entire time it was in the store at all the other customers. Finally, when the lady came up to the front end to check out, she went to one register and the dog jumped up onto my counter and barked at me so loud .. it's muzzle was about 12 inches away from my face!!!🥺🥺🥺 It gave me a mild form of PTSD that took months to overcome 😢😢😢. Not fun. Unfortunately, I mentioned the incident to the managers....and they didn't care at all. I haven't quit yet.....but I wouldn't mind 😕. Apathy and indifference are horrible attitudes to be around. Oh, well!!! Dogs can be cute, and they can be terrifying 😮. Thanks for listening. Miss Monique 🙂🌷🙏🕊️
Our local dog park is great because it is membership -based. All the dogs have to have proof of all their updated vaccines, be fixed, and be temperament -tested before allowed in. The other ones in our city are very much like the "Wild West" so I'm glad we have that one to go to!
@@blueflare3848 if dog vaccinated as a puppy ,it have immunity for rest of the life. If I'm vaccinated against tuberculosis and you re not,are you in risk?;) ppl don't understand how vaccines works;)
I take my dog to walk around outside of the dog park. He can see the other dogs, work on reactivity, and get the socialization while being safe with me. I took him in when no one was around and was absolutely disgusted! There was broken glass, trash, and poop everywhere! Yes some places will be better maintained than others, but honestly I wouldn’t let my dog run around in there even with his shoes on (yes my dog wears shoes in public to keep his feet safe).
I would rephrase your statement. it's not just "some" people that don't pick up, it's a huge number of people. I've been going to dog parks for over 10 years and I'm constantly picking up 20-30 bags of poop easily. I go back the next day and it's fresh poop all over the place. It's gotten worse over the years. It's absolutely disgusting. If I can pick up after my 3 large rescues, there is no excuse. This is a big pet peeve for me. And it's happengin at all the dog parks. Very frustrating.
I took my dog to dog park and doggy daycare. All the things this trainer said can happen, did happen with my dog. My dog got pneumonia from daycare and almost died at under a year old. And he definately got reactivity due to my poor socialising of him with dogparks. I love him to death and he is now 7 yrs old, but will do things differently with the next dog. And dog park is bad because many dog owners there are often completely irresponsible. I can say if anything good came of having a reactive dog, I learned the importance of being very keen to dog body language, respectful of space, recognition of dangers, responsibility of dog ownership, and the need for precise training.
Your dog wants to spend time with you.Put the phone down and interact with your dog. I am sure that dog parks have their place, but supervision and common sense should prevail.
Excellent video. Good pretraining is important when exposing your dog to new experiences so they will know how to handle them. My Amstaff is a trained and certified Therapy Dog. She goes with me everywhere dogs are permitted as part of her ongoing training. Even with her training, I'm careful to manage the situations that she is presented with so that she always feels at ease. She is very friendly and enjoys her therapy work meeting people, as well as other dogs which is good enrichment for her. I never take her to dog parks. Dog parks are full of untrained and unsupervised dogs which creates a lot of potential problems. I imagine that doggy day care places are similar minefields. I hope this video gets wide viewing.
The first dog park in my state opened near me in the year 2000, before cell phones were the screened entertainment systems that they are now, back when there were purely communication devices. Folks watched their dogs, and pretty closely, too. A bunch of us carried water in big cups and if a serious fight broke out, the park was small enough that you could get there quickly and dump water on the offending dog, who would always break off the disturbing behavior. When young men with pit bulls, who did not watch their dogs closely, started coming, the group of us who were regulars just left. The arrival of any rambunctious dog who was not well supervised always resulted in at least some folks leaving. I just cannot imagine it today. Too bad they cannot block cell phone service at the dog parks!
My Aussie Border Healer mix was in Doggie Daycare. Did great for about 9 months all of a sudden she has dog aggression. All of the people at the daycare pointed to me that I did something to cause this. We (I) are still struggling with this issue but working on it. This video has been an affirmation that I NEED to do more training with my BB I adore. THANK YOU!🩵
ABSOLUTELY love your videos. You explain things expertly and give the reasons why. I am training service dogs and have to get them used to events. From watching this video I realize I need to ease in to them and go bigger and more stimulating a little at a time 👍🏻Keep up the great work ❤
Dog parks can be very nice! and it can also be a nightmare :( you can't trust people's abilities to take care of their dogs. If you must go to one, go when it's empty or go with someone you know and has a dog. Also make sure you have a good recall like the trainer said so you can call your dog at all times. Don't just leave your dog unatended be with them at all times. When I used to take my dog to the dog park these were the rules I would follow becasue I had learned the hard way not to trust other people's dogs.
So right! I've never taken any of my dogs to a dog park. You don't even know if the other dogs are current on rabies, for one. Two, if you practice or compete in Schutzhund or Agility, you know that you are required to be in control of your dog at all times. Are you ready to step in and separate two or more dogs that are into it tooth and nail? In a world of pet owners, the majority don't even teach basic CGC skills. My brother lives in Atlanta and he takes his 120lb Rhodesian Ridgeback (looks more like a Boerboel) to the dog park and enjoys watching his dog dominate other dogs. Not happening here.
the day care my dog goes to is in door and out door. they have cameras all over and they also separate the big dogs to small dogs. Im always watching the cameras and I've never had an issue. He also goes to training there as well
Empty dog parks are very useful for people in apartments who want a fenced area for proofing off lead work. We leave whenever other dogs arrive but do appreciate the space and Eps loves some off lead work. Her long distance come cues have improved a great deal utilising these spaces but I hear of terrible incidents that happen regularly when dogs who don't know each other and inexperienced or ignorant handlers are unable to control any agressive issues. I would not risk Eps. I let her off with 2 friendly bigger dogs once and they mobbed her with the friendly boisterous curiosity of big gangly young dogs. There was no agression but Eps was tiny compared to them and came out of it with some scratches and a very swift retreat to my legs (good girl). I will not be silly enough to risk her like that again. Thanks for the clip.
There’s a thing called sniffspot I use for my big reactive dogs. You get to choose fenced or partially fenced area, yard size with pool or trails or just space, and it’s only your dogs always. Sometimes we bring a couple of friends so they get play dates but I’m so very very happy about finding that app. Also it’s typically $5-$15 for an hour.
Great information! Appreciate this before we make the mistake of taking our 10 month exuberant boxer to an event. We’re doing all the training and was considering taking her to an event, but she is DEFINITELY not there yet.
Long crate time is a terrible idea for some breed of dogs, example huskies. You will never get to bond with your dog, any chance the dog gets, he(she) will be bolting away from you.
I thought the same on dog parks - I've avoided them. Good information on doggie daycare; need to check them out carefully. A good obedience class can help you teach the dog proper manners, work even with distractions, and listening to YOU while there are other dogs around.
Same here because the dog parks in this city are sumps. Often, because they slope down from the road, you can’t see if there’s any standing water until you actually enter. My dog was so 🤢 sick poor guy. Lesson learned at his expense. I still feel bad about it.
We have a great doggy daycare, but I asked a lot of questions before deciding to take my dog. The play sessions are divided into small groups, dogs are paired off with dogs of like energy, and they're crated in between sessions. All dogs are required to have proof of core vaccines. My dog plays with one or two other dogs at the most in a session. It's really helped socialize my dog who lived in the humane society for 10 months and was in obedience training at the prison program for 1 month prior, and he's only 1.5 years old.
We go to the dog park but only when there are NO other dogs there. If we get there and there are other dogs, we go home. And we leave if someone comes while we’re there.
9/10 times the dog park is heckin NO GO. many incidentally neglectful owners and basically wild dogs. and I firmly believed this before ever owning a dog!! maybe some parts of the world are much better than others, but here in flyover country nope haha
I've been going to dog parks for 15-20 years, it's gotten much more "crazier" since the pandemic. I see so many dogs that are bursting at the seams, anxious, pent of energy and don't have manners and know how to properly greet other dogs (because they were never taught). I've definitely noticed a difference in all dog parks for past 4 years.
Since I live in an apartment, now, my only chance of letting my dog off leash is the dog park. Note, I lived in a house with a yard when I got her. She is now 14, but still fairly high energy. I don't go in if there are more than 5 other dogs, or if they are overly rambunctious. Also, if they are all much larger than her (my parents had a loose GS jump on their dog's back, years ago. Their dog's back was broken in multiple places. This wasn't at a dog park. They were almost home after a walk, and their dog was on leash). I also stay with my dog, so if a new dog comes in and won't leave her alone, I can intervene. The worst pests are unneutered males, even though my dog is spayed. If there is even one dog who won't leave her alone, we leave.
Also, to the third place you mentioned, I want to add this for people to think about. When you bring your pet dog to a public event, like that, you make things 10 times harder for people who legitimately need to have their dog there, that is a service dog. I have taken my dog, my guide dog to very challenging places, for instance, universal studios, See World, concerts, the Kennedy, space, Center, successfully, and part of the reason for that is? Because Pet dogs are not allowed to be there at all. I often have to decide whether I want to go to a particular festival or public market or farmers market, And deal with the stress of a large number of poorly controlled pet dogs, or whether I just skip it, which is not a choice I feel that I should have to make. I would say out of every hundred pet dogs I encounter there are one or two, where the dog is properly socialized, clean, well trained, and the owner is being attentive to, and managing behaviors of that dog. One or two out of every hundred, so unless you are one of the most amazing pet dog owners out there, and really listen to training From experts, like the one who has created this video, please don’t take your dogs into places as described in the third scenario here, you have a choice, whether or not to bring your dog, but for someone who needs a service dog, we don’t really have a choice, so please don’t make our lives harder, Just so you can have fun, because I also guarantee you that most of the time, you might be having fun, but trust me, your dog is not.
I learned early that my dog, a Pom, doesn't enjoy our local dog park. One day she was surrounded by three golden retrievers, who didn't belong in the small dog area, they had her on her back and sniffing her, she was terrified. Occasionally I will take her there if it looks empty and there is always one dog who comes in later who is aggressively friendly, that's when we leave.
Excellent advice. The only thing I think you got backwards was the chihuahua and the "wild and crazy" chocolate lab. 😂 In my experience, anyway 😊. Thanks for all you do for dogs and their parents. 👍
In Sweden it is not a allowed to leave a dog in a crate for a hole day. Its not allowed to leave them home over 6 hours. Older dogs and puppies is 4 hours. And they need to have some space in the home, At least 1-2 rooms. In crate ok for like an hour NO more! This sound horrible, no wonder dog attacks in USA is so high. Poor dogs.
Another place to be very careful is pet supply stores. I have a small dog and had another patron warn me, “My dogs don’t like small dogs!”. One can question why someone would bring unfriendly dogs to a pet supply store, but since people do, and since many dogs get excited by the food smells and toys and other dogs, I avoid bringing my dog.
I wish I saw this before I got my dog. I had no idea that dog parks were so bad until after I probably traumatized my dog. It’s probably why he is so reactive now.
I love your videos! And agreed!! I don’t take our dogs to these places. The only thing is crating dogs for 8-9 hours a day is just something I don’t want to do. My dog stays in the living room (not the whole house) when I go out. They don’t do anything but sleep (I have a pup cam). If they’re behaving and calm it’s ok right? 😊🤔
Excellent points! I also include Pet Stores like petco. Again, almost to e same reasons as the dog park! The last point, social events….. Unless it’s a service dog….like my GSD. 😀 Thank you for your info!!!
My small dog park doesnt have any fences. I said to one of my neighbours maybe they should put up a safety fence. He said absolutely NOT. By not having any fences people can only bring well behaved dogs. The park has streets and traffic on 3 sides.
Also with doggy daycare, there should be a behavior and training test for entry. If they just take any dog and are not selective then you should say a hard no. They should be trainers also and make sure your dog is following rules at all times. The play should be more structured play, like runs, and swimming, where the focus in on the humans and not the other dogs.
Our dog was attacked at a dog park and the owner did nothing. Luckily she wasn't hurt but she was terrified and aggressive of other dogs after that until we socialized her more.
I’ve seen a few members-only dog parks. You pay a membership fee and each dog is vetted - they have to provide proof of vaccination and have size appropriate play hours and a dog can be expelled for behavior issues. This might be the way to go if you really like the idea of a dog park.
Yeahhhh unfortunately not everyone that takes their dogs to the dog parks have proper etiquette and do NOT have trainings taken seriously… lack of recall training is a huge problem with most people that go to dog parks .
There are lots of issues. I can't tell you how many owners I see constantly walking around on the phone paying absolutely no attention to their dog (or pooping), or walk so far ahead while the dog is running around behind them and they have no idea what their dog is doing. So frustrating. And yes, I've noticed even more in the past 4 years especially dogs have not been taught any manners or how to appropriately greet other dogs etc etc. They are good dogs but have no manners and are bursting at the seams, no impulse control, or like you said recall etc etc.
@@beasport505 I solely take my dog to the dog park to practice commands with distractions or better when’s it’s empty in the morning I’ll let her off leash and when I see others approaching I’ll re-attach her leash as an extra precaution .. she is going to be 4 months in a couple days and she likes to stay in a very near vicinity of me so recall has not been an issue so far . she is a bull terrier and very intelligent too .. I was expecting training to be difficult but it’s been good so far considering she has been labeled “impossible to train” and “stubborn breed”.. the main issue I have come across are aggressive smaller dogs and their owners letting them jump and nip on people & their dogs “they aren’t aggressive” lol …. It’s a bummer because my dog wants to play too but I don’t allow her to behave that way with smaller dogs because she is just heavy she can possibly hurt them by jumping on them so I just avoid other people’s dogs…I try to be considerate but not everyone bothers doing the same .. I don’t think it’s too hard to read their body language when you’ve spent some time and figure out what kind of personality they have.. a lot of people really don’t pay attention to their dogs social cues they are too busy like you said on the phone or being distracted by other things .. small attention to things like that really pay off too …
I hear your concerns but I think most of it boils down to being watchful, using common sense and doing research. Imagine if you applied this advance to your kid. It basically equates to them living in an bubble, being homeschooled and having as minimal interaction as possible with other kids. That's not the life I want for my dog. Anytime you walk outside there's risk, make reasonable choices, take precautions, odds are your pup will be fine. I admit there's examples that contradict my views, but it is night and day her mood, energy levle and sleep schedule on days she gets to play with other dogs vs not. Life without some risk isn't Life.
I have been taking my rescues to dog parks for about 15-20 years, I am very strategic when I do, I go off hours and on weekdays as opposed to weekends. Even if I do go on weekends, I try to avoid the typical time between 12-2 seems to be high traffic. Plus I enjoy walking my dogs and enjoy watching them constantly. It also helps that if you have a trained eye for dog body language reading both ours and others. So far, we have never had any incidents. The parks we go to are quite huge and so if it's not crazy crazy busy, it's easy to keep distance. About 10 football fields large.
Don't take dogs to outdoor music concerts, especially rock concerts. Often it's too hot for the dog, no shade and the sound is too loud for a dog. I watched a dog start to go into convulsions at an outdoor concert. The owner of the dog tied his dog up to the PA system. Seriously. I would never crate a dog for several hours. I agree with you about the dog park but not about crating a dog all day. I think it's better to hire a dog walker or sitter than to crate a dog all day. A dog in a crate isn't being mentally or physically stimulated.
Dog parks...Yes, I learned my lesson. I had a 45 lb aussiedoodle female and we went to the local dog park. I worriedly observed all the people who let their dogs out at the car so the dogs went racing to the gate all excited. They would then come thru the gate hyper excited and race around, nipping and chasing other dogs. Then there was the people. Some of them are just off the wall crazy. Bringing untrained unsupervised unsocialized breeds like pitbulls and letting them loose and acting like they're just little babies when obviously they were acting very aggressively. Then there was a story about the two German shepherds that came together. They attacked a poodle and killed it in the park. Then there was a lady who would bring her 18-month-old toddler and leave the child toddling around the dogs, I'm trying to pet all of the dogs unsupervised and unwatched. It horrified me as some dogs were oftentimes being very aggressive running around snapping at everything. I finally gave up and started going very early in the morning right after the sun came up. I usually had the park alone. But then one morning, a man came with his full grown 100 lb male Great Dane. It was a very large park but for some reason both he and the dog gravitated towards us. Then the Great Dane started getting really excited and zooming curcles around us. Suddenly it turned and ran straight at my dog hitting her full-on in the chest knocking her, yelping, 10 ft away. Then it sweved again and in a split second it ran straight at my knees. I thought oh my gosh here goes my knees. At the last millisecond, the dog swerved away. All of this happened quicker than I can tell it. The man kept walking along calmly, totally ignoring what his dog was doing. I didn't dare say anything in an angry tone for fear that this would be enough to set the Great Dane off. My dog picked herself up very shakily, started looking very worried and upset and in pain. I went to her calmly, snapped her leash on, and encouraged her to follow me We walked away from those two as calmly and quickly as we could without looking like we were running. I got in the car and I never went back. The man who had gone out of his way to be walking within a few feet of us, never looked at us or even acted like he noticed that we had left. Weird. My girl didn't suffer any permanent injury except to her psyche. She became very fearful of other dogs especially male dogs. In the future whenever she saw a male dog she began to be extremely aggressive on the leash barking and snarling and growling. She wouldn't let a male dog get close to her again. She could tell the difference between male and female from several yards away and began barking before they were close. I tried to rescue a Great Dane once....a 95 lb male that had been on its chain most of its life. That dog became aggressive and nothing that I could do would help him. We sought professional help but to tell you the truth the professionals were afraid of him too. Whenever he started playing he began to get hyper excited, his hackles raised and then he would begin to turn aggressive. So I was unwilling to do a single thing that might cause a hyper excited GD dog, running circles around us loose in the park, that was on the verge of becoming too excited, to become aggressive....except to get out of Dodge. And stay out. I never darkened the gateway of a dog park again.
My Great Pyrenees got poisoned at at dog park in Galveston Tx The vet said it was some kind of street drugs- some teens kept calling her over We almost lost her !!
It only takes one irresponsible owner to lead to tragedy at the dog park. After witnessing an owner who was unable to keep his large dog from mauling (and probably killing) a small dog in a park, I decided not to risk it. Some owners really cannot be trusted.
Hmmm we do our off leash dog park every day. We walk 3 k’s. He sniffs and runs, plays, swims in the summer. We love it! Sometimes we take a ball and play.
I had a Westie killed at a dog park by a mastiff who was wearing a muzzle which had not been attached properly. The owner just shrugged & said “looked like a rabbit.” Never again.
Dog parks are fine, but wouldn’t make it a regular occurrence. If you do it in the beginning when they younger/a puppy it will make walks harder (wanting to play with every dog that passes)
The dog park I go to a lot I know almost every dog . It's a small dog park compared to the other dog parks in the area . I have seen 10 week old puppies , aggressive dogs at the bigger dog parks .:(
I went once with a friend and her dog. There was 1 other dog there. Well the other dog bit my 9 month old border collie and then the dog and the owner fled the dog park. I never did get any information which resulted in a veterinarian visit, wound control and a rabies shot (I was so upset with another rabies shot at that age). I have never been back!
I went to a dog park just once after my dog was well trained because they'd opened the 1st one in my city. I couldn't wait to leave and never go again. It was full of horribly behaved dogs that shouldn't have been allowed off leash and really bad pet parents ejo were totally ignoring what thier dogs were doing. I was jumped on and bit on the backside just after entering and before taking my dog off her leash. Thankfully it didn't break the skin just tore my pants. The pet owner did nothing. When I told the dogs owner who was busy on her phone then turned to pick up my dog to leave, her and her dog had disappeared in an instant. I only allow my dogs to be around dogs I know are safe and well behaved.
Do you have any advice for calming my dog down in parking lots? When we go to the vet to monitor his weight or when we get him groomed, he gets so nervous in the parking lot.
I take my dog to classes twice a week, and what we learned there from the beginning is that "if it's scary, feed it!" Basically, put treats (if your dog is already scared, I'd recommend very high value treats) around the car as the dog comes out to encourage the dog to move around but the food will give it something positive to focus on. I did this with my puppy and horses, bikes, prams, buses, strangers coming towards us etc. Some things, like bikes, we did in classes initially so his first experiences were positive. For the horses, I found a field with a horse at the other end and walked along it and treated the dog for not paying any attention when the horse moved. After a couple times, the horse was right by the fence we walk past so I walked backwards and forwards in front of the horse with my puppy and fed him whenever he was closest to the horse. Then I kicked it up a notch and made him sit near the horse (never touching it, just close to where it was looking over the fence) and he would get treats for ignoring the horse. Now he is completely unfazed by horses, sheep, etc. He doesn't pay much attention to them and I can trust him not to bark and spook them. He used to get really scared of joggers coming towards us, so I did the exact same thing whenever I saw a jogger down the road. When he's already nervous or scared of something it can take a little longer, but I find with consistency and time you can really teach a dog to make a positive association and gain confidence back. If your dog loves playing tug, that's a great way to do it too. If your dog learns that every time you stop in a car park, he gets to play his favourite game with a favourite toy, he will start looking forward to those places. Definitely find good opportunities, like starting in car parks that are empty or almost empty, then building up gradually.
Not everyone lives in a rural area or owns acreage where dogs can run off leash. Dog parks are often the only places urban families can use for allowing their dogs to run free. I believe these leash rules have come about as a result irresponsible owners who have not trained their dogs.
Don't agree. Had an 8 year old rescue that did not like others dogs.. but I reconditioned her, she was then so happy to be in the park. She was excited and pulled to get in. My dog learned to love being around other dogs,... you should not avoid, you should make them feel safe and happy in those environment. Good questions to ask for a day care. All my dogs did not like crate, .... and I would never leave them along more that 4 hours a day. And my dog would rather be with me at outdoor events, ... then be alone and tressed. They are pack animals. Give pack mentality..rather than isolation.
Dog parks are like child parks be Vigilant. Not all dogs/children are nice. Watch your dog! Dog walkers can be excellent especially for the elderly/ill etc.
"I wish my dog was as well behaved as yours are." I hate when people tell me that. Should I be truthful or being polite? I could say "thank you" and leave it there or I could say what I really think. "Your dog will never have any chance at this kind of inclusion because you only wish for improvement instead of putting in the work needed to make it happen." For example; I took my dogs to the cities fireworks display. Everyone there kept asking why I wasn't worried about them freaking out. "No worries." I said. They didn't even care. My dogs are bomb proof because they have been around fireworks, gun ranges, nail guns, etc., all their lives. To them, scary stuff tastes like hot dogs and new tennis balls.
It didnt take me long to figure out dog parks, and there are a lot here, are essentially Canine MMA arenas. Fortunately, this area is surrounded by a lot of public land. Easy to get out with him.
Here in the states there is a new respiratory virus going around, meeting other dogs may not be the best idea, especially if there is no way to know where the other dogs have been.
Think you might have a "leadership" problem? Watch this: ua-cam.com/video/QntS570VFZ0/v-deo.html
Happy Training!
We used to have puppy play dates in my backyard w several of the neighbors’ dogs, but oh, my poor grass! It still hasn’t recovered from the trail of dirt they blazed! Worth it, though! Love my dogs and their puppy friends!
You did this right. You knew the other dogs and were there to watch them. This is so much fun for puppies. 😀🐶💜
You forgot 'Grandma's house'
That women will be chucking cookies on the floor when you are not looking.. 🤣
😂😅❤
My mom!! Omg lol! So true about grandma's house!!
And she feeds my begging dog FROM THE TABLE. Gosh!
Stop. Those are for our human grandchildren 😳😂
I took my dog to the same dog park , that I have been bringing her too for months . She has a reliable recall and heel . However I was not expecting her to meet with an aggressive dog who previously was nice and played well . I do as you should and that's observe your animal playing and interacting . I think it's a shame that so many ppl bring their dog and bury there face in there phones , I would hope that they don't do this with their children. Just like having kids , a dog is family and should be regarded as such . I should never have to pull multiple dogs off of my dog when the other handlers are careless. I just thought I should share
Yes. My sister’s lab was attacked by another dog at the dog park and resulted in high vet bills and a trip to small claims court. My vet has told me that he spends a lot of time dealing with the aftermath of dog parks. There are far too many people that don’t train their dogs and go to the parks to just let them run.
Agreed. My vet said avoid dog parks! We take our 9 month old puppy to remote open spaces to run, sniff, and play or the occasional well structured doggy daycare, or lastly a sniff spot. Many owners think it’s ok to approach without asking or controlling their dog! Especially the small dog owners 🤬
Seems dog parks are making vets money
We have been taking our rescues to dog parks for over 10 years. Keep in mind they are huge and I'm very strategic of "when" I go visit them. usually and odd time during the weekdays. I avoid weekends, long weekends, and avoid the first warm day after a -30 winter days. Where dogs have had very little exercise, anxious, pent up energy all recipe for dog scraps. Plus I've noticed the past 4 years since pandemic, the atmosphere and temperments of dogs/owners visiting parks are out of control, rambucious, and have absolutely no manners (not properly or appropriate greetings with other dogs). Plus I spent the last 2 years obtaining my dog training certification among a few others including master course in aggression so I can read dog body language very well and often know which dogs to avoid and walk the other way. Like I say the dog park is about 10 football fields and going in off hours helps me avoid situations like this.
Before I had my dog, I visited the local dog park several times (yes, I was the crazy lady without a dog) and I cringed at the things I saw. I eventually befriended the groundskeeper and he would let us in an hour and a half before the park open to the public, not only did we have the park all to ourselves, and my dog loved herding the ducks off of the soccer fields next to the park and take them to the lake. It was a win-win for everybody. Groundskeeper was grateful for one less thing he had to do :-) needless to say we were both very sad when he retired. By then I had a 100% rock solid recall and we found a nice play we could go to.
Later on I found a dog park that is membership only. Yes, is not free but, it gives me the peace of mind that I can rent the place just for us in 30 minutes increments and I don't have to worry about other dogs. They ask for vaccination records there is clinic next door in the event of an emergency and 20% of the fees go to the local animal shelter. While you are there, you have access to the hydrotherapy pool, agility equipment and tennis ball machines if you have a fetch crazy dog and you don't feel like throwing a ball the entire time.
@ealston you have found heaven!!!!
That's awesome. Wish they had one here. It would be worth the cost. My dog loves doing agility. I began her training with a kit I set up in my yard.
@@user-jb4xv4im9o that is fabulous! I ended up setting one up also in my backyard. I also have the fitpaws equipment to strengthen his core and he loves it. I swear my dog is in better shape than I am :-)
…and doggy day cares can change owners without knowledge: was at a well respected daycare with a friend picking up her kenneled pet where a young pointer was harassing and biting every small dog in the glassed in romp room. All smaller dogs, including a basset, were hiding under the 2 chairs in the room, while the pointer tried to dig and pull out his “prey”! I ran to the desk and told the staff that the dog needed to be removed. I was told it was owners dog… and the guy in the room allowing it to happen was the owner! Very glad I didn’t have a dog there…
I can not use a crate for my dog, because he has kennel stress.
Thank you! I’ve seen dogs get hurt in dog parks and only go off hours and carefully. My puppy was almost killed by German Shepherd that “never hurt anyone” before. After a few thousand dollars and vet bills, I learned my lesson-male dogs are threatened by other male dogs, even puppies.
There are so many people that don't understand dogs especially breeds. There are dogs that have high prey drive. It also could have been a dog that was frustrated and redirected his frustration. Many reasons why a dog would do that. Anyways, a great book highly recommended for all dog owners for many reasons is Meet Your Dog by Kim Brophey. Excellent book.
So glad I saw this, I've been thinking more about doggy daycare recently and now I have better information to work with. When I really think about it, my dog is perfectly happy at home and it's just me who feels pressured to make him more 'socially active'. A trusted petsitter seems like a much better option if my goal is to guarantee his comfort and safety while I'm away.
I agree 100% too! Mentally stimulating/tasking your dog can tire your dog just as effectively as physical exercise. I love puzzles and hide and seek things 😊
Agree 💯! We play “seek” we play for hours,
No group daycare.
We brought my dog to dog parks for the first 1-2 years of her life because it was Covid and wanted her to be socialized. Biggest mistake now she has anxiety and immediately submits to anyone or other dogs. We have been working on rebuilding her confidence.
We adopted our dog (3yo) last year, and we've definitely had to adjust our expectations when it comes to dog parks/ day care. We're working with a trainer on his reactivity, but have learned to accept that those places might never be good for him. One thing that really helps us exercise him (besides walks/runs) is a 30ft leash. With that he can just run and sniff his heart out, while we can still safely keep him from other dogs or running away.
Absolutely! I took my Sheltie puppy to obedience class. During break the instructor had everyone take the dogs off a leash to “play”. On two separate occasions she was attacked by other puppies. They were both a hound breed. Katie never got over her fear of other dogs except her adopted brother who was a Sheltie too. She would actually try to be the attacker when she felt threatened. I finally had to disallow other dogs in the house.
Yes, same happened to me when I took my GSD pup to obedience class. He was a very confident pup, the trainer wanted the pups to have a run and play in an enclosure and two staffies just headed for him and pulled him down and attacked him, there was no provocation from my dog. Everybody thought it was funny for two smaller dogs to pull down a bigger dog, except the trainer and myself.
What do you mean by attacked?
@@saramations They pinned him down and started biting and pulling him, it wasn't puppy play anymore. They were also older than most of the other dogs, but still under one year old.
Dog parks and day care, like trainers, are not all of the same level. I agree that ‘events’ should not be imposed on unprepared dogs.
I’ve had an incredibly positive experience with Doggy Daycare! Our dog loves it. Key, though, is research. The one we use has a high staff to dog ratio. They insist on a trial couple of hours. They have active play areas and quiet areas, and encourage downtime in the afternoon. Dogs are ‘sorted’ according to temperament and energy levels, not just breed or size. Ours has many friends that he’s made and can hardly wait to get in there
Another place that dogs should never enter is a store. I work at a department store as the front end supervisor. Last November a woman brought in her supossed emotional support dog. The dog barked the entire time it was in the store at all the other customers. Finally, when the lady came up to the front end to check out, she went to one register and the dog jumped up onto my counter and barked at me so loud .. it's muzzle was about 12 inches away from my face!!!🥺🥺🥺
It gave me a mild form of PTSD that took months to overcome 😢😢😢. Not fun.
Unfortunately, I mentioned the incident to the managers....and they didn't care at all.
I haven't quit yet.....but I wouldn't mind 😕. Apathy and indifference are horrible attitudes to be around. Oh, well!!! Dogs can be cute, and they can be terrifying 😮.
Thanks for listening.
Miss Monique 🙂🌷🙏🕊️
Our local dog park is great because it is membership -based. All the dogs have to have proof of all their updated vaccines, be fixed, and be temperament -tested before allowed in. The other ones in our city are very much like the "Wild West" so I'm glad we have that one to go to!
Ĺol vaccine doesn't mean anything seriously
If my dog is not vaccinated but yours is what the danger for yours?;)
@@CentralasianshepherdAlabaiUSAWhy would you risk the safety of your own dog?
@@blueflare3848 if dog vaccinated as a puppy ,it have immunity for rest of the life. If I'm vaccinated against tuberculosis and you re not,are you in risk?;) ppl don't understand how vaccines works;)
@@blueflare3848 if I'm vaccinated against tuberculosis but most ppl not,are they risking? Do you understand how vaccines works?
I take my dog to walk around outside of the dog park. He can see the other dogs, work on reactivity, and get the socialization while being safe with me.
I took him in when no one was around and was absolutely disgusted! There was broken glass, trash, and poop everywhere! Yes some places will be better maintained than others, but honestly I wouldn’t let my dog run around in there even with his shoes on (yes my dog wears shoes in public to keep his feet safe).
I use the dog park at 6:30 in the morning.
I think the worst part is that there are some people, that do not pick up their dogs poop!!
I would rephrase your statement. it's not just "some" people that don't pick up, it's a huge number of people. I've been going to dog parks for over 10 years and I'm constantly picking up 20-30 bags of poop easily. I go back the next day and it's fresh poop all over the place. It's gotten worse over the years. It's absolutely disgusting. If I can pick up after my 3 large rescues, there is no excuse. This is a big pet peeve for me. And it's happengin at all the dog parks. Very frustrating.
I took my dog to dog park and doggy daycare. All the things this trainer said can happen, did happen with my dog. My dog got pneumonia from daycare and almost died at under a year old. And he definately got reactivity due to my poor socialising of him with dogparks. I love him to death and he is now 7 yrs old, but will do things differently with the next dog. And dog park is bad because many dog owners there are often completely irresponsible.
I can say if anything good came of having a reactive dog, I learned the importance of being very keen to dog body language, respectful of space, recognition of dangers, responsibility of dog ownership, and the need for precise training.
Agree, agree and agree. Finally a dog trainer with actual common sense! You are a rare find.
Your dog wants to spend time with you.Put the phone down and interact with your dog. I am sure that dog parks have their place, but supervision and common sense should prevail.
Excellent video. Good pretraining is important when exposing your dog to new experiences so they will know how to handle them. My Amstaff is a trained and certified Therapy Dog. She goes with me everywhere dogs are permitted as part of her ongoing training. Even with her training, I'm careful to manage the situations that she is presented with so that she always feels at ease. She is very friendly and enjoys her therapy work meeting people, as well as other dogs which is good enrichment for her. I never take her to dog parks. Dog parks are full of untrained and unsupervised dogs which creates a lot of potential problems. I imagine that doggy day care places are similar minefields. I hope this video gets wide viewing.
I 100% agree , people do not watch there dogs
The first dog park in my state opened near me in the year 2000, before cell phones were the screened entertainment systems that they are now, back when there were purely communication devices. Folks watched their dogs, and pretty closely, too. A bunch of us carried water in big cups and if a serious fight broke out, the park was small enough that you could get there quickly and dump water on the offending dog, who would always break off the disturbing behavior. When young men with pit bulls, who did not watch their dogs closely, started coming, the group of us who were regulars just left. The arrival of any rambunctious dog who was not well supervised always resulted in at least some folks leaving. I just cannot imagine it today. Too bad they cannot block cell phone service at the dog parks!
Thank you for saying it Kayl! "Don't be that friend!"
My Aussie Border Healer mix was in Doggie Daycare. Did great for about 9 months all of a sudden she has dog aggression. All of the people at the daycare pointed to me that I did something to cause this.
We (I) are still struggling with this issue but working on it.
This video has been an affirmation that I NEED to do more training with my BB I adore. THANK YOU!🩵
ABSOLUTELY love your videos. You explain things expertly and give the reasons why. I am training service dogs and have to get them used to events. From watching this video I realize I need to ease in to them and go bigger and more stimulating a little at a time 👍🏻Keep up the great work ❤
Dog parks can be very nice! and it can also be a nightmare :( you can't trust people's abilities to take care of their dogs. If you must go to one, go when it's empty or go with someone you know and has a dog. Also make sure you have a good recall like the trainer said so you can call your dog at all times. Don't just leave your dog unatended be with them at all times. When I used to take my dog to the dog park these were the rules I would follow becasue I had learned the hard way not to trust other people's dogs.
She’s right about taking a dog to a dog park.
Absolutely correct advice.
I only let mine socialize with dogs he knows.
Thank you
So right! I've never taken any of my dogs to a dog park. You don't even know if the other dogs are current on rabies, for one. Two, if you practice or compete in Schutzhund or Agility, you know that you are required to be in control of your dog at all times. Are you ready to step in and separate two or more dogs that are into it tooth and nail? In a world of pet owners, the majority don't even teach basic CGC skills. My brother lives in Atlanta and he takes his 120lb Rhodesian Ridgeback (looks more like a Boerboel) to the dog park and enjoys watching his dog dominate other dogs. Not happening here.
the day care my dog goes to is in door and out door. they have cameras all over and they also separate the big dogs to small dogs. Im always watching the cameras and I've never had an issue. He also goes to training there as well
Empty dog parks are very useful for people in apartments who want a fenced area for proofing off lead work. We leave whenever other dogs arrive but do appreciate the space and Eps loves some off lead work. Her long distance come cues have improved a great deal utilising these spaces but I hear of terrible incidents that happen regularly when dogs who don't know each other and inexperienced or ignorant handlers are unable to control any agressive issues.
I would not risk Eps. I let her off with 2 friendly bigger dogs once and they mobbed her with the friendly boisterous curiosity of big gangly young dogs.
There was no agression but Eps was tiny compared to them and came out of it with some scratches and a very swift retreat to my legs (good girl). I will not be silly enough to risk her like that again.
Thanks for the clip.
There’s a thing called sniffspot I use for my big reactive dogs. You get to choose fenced or partially fenced area, yard size with pool or trails or just space, and it’s only your dogs always. Sometimes we bring a couple of friends so they get play dates but I’m so very very happy about finding that app. Also it’s typically $5-$15 for an hour.
I love your videos so professionally done
Dang I’ve learned so much from this channel. It’s amazing how misunderstood dogs are
So greatful that I found this channel! You are making really good videos! ❤
Great information! Appreciate this before we make the mistake of taking our 10 month exuberant boxer to an event. We’re doing all the training and was considering taking her to an event, but she is DEFINITELY not there yet.
I would like to add Pet stores for the same reasons as dog parks.
Long crate time is a terrible idea for some breed of dogs, example huskies. You will never get to bond with your dog, any chance the dog gets, he(she) will be bolting away from you.
I thought the same on dog parks - I've avoided them. Good information on doggie daycare; need to check them out carefully. A good obedience class can help you teach the dog proper manners, work even with distractions, and listening to YOU while there are other dogs around.
Learned the dog park thing the hard way. Both of mine got giardia and were sick for two weeks. They recovered and I will never go back again.
Same here because the dog parks in this city are sumps. Often, because they slope down from the road, you can’t see if there’s any standing water until you actually enter. My dog was so 🤢 sick poor guy. Lesson learned at his expense. I still feel bad about it.
We have a great doggy daycare, but I asked a lot of questions before deciding to take my dog. The play sessions are divided into small groups, dogs are paired off with dogs of like energy, and they're crated in between sessions. All dogs are required to have proof of core vaccines. My dog plays with one or two other dogs at the most in a session. It's really helped socialize my dog who lived in the humane society for 10 months and was in obedience training at the prison program for 1 month prior, and he's only 1.5 years old.
Thank you for taking away my guilt for not taking my dogs to the dog park.
We go to the dog park but only when there are NO other dogs there. If we get there and there are other dogs, we go home. And we leave if someone comes while we’re there.
💯% agree on avoiding the dog parks! Great video!
9/10 times the dog park is heckin NO GO. many incidentally neglectful owners and basically wild dogs. and I firmly believed this before ever owning a dog!! maybe some parts of the world are much better than others, but here in flyover country nope haha
I've been going to dog parks for 15-20 years, it's gotten much more "crazier" since the pandemic. I see so many dogs that are bursting at the seams, anxious, pent of energy and don't have manners and know how to properly greet other dogs (because they were never taught). I've definitely noticed a difference in all dog parks for past 4 years.
Since I live in an apartment, now, my only chance of letting my dog off leash is the dog park. Note, I lived in a house with a yard when I got her. She is now 14, but still fairly high energy. I don't go in if there are more than 5 other dogs, or if they are overly rambunctious. Also, if they are all much larger than her (my parents had a loose GS jump on their dog's back, years ago. Their dog's back was broken in multiple places. This wasn't at a dog park. They were almost home after a walk, and their dog was on leash). I also stay with my dog, so if a new dog comes in and won't leave her alone, I can intervene. The worst pests are unneutered males, even though my dog is spayed. If there is even one dog who won't leave her alone, we leave.
Also, to the third place you mentioned, I want to add this for people to think about. When you bring your pet dog to a public event, like that, you make things 10 times harder for people who legitimately need to have their dog there, that is a service dog. I have taken my dog, my guide dog to very challenging places, for instance, universal studios, See World, concerts, the Kennedy, space, Center, successfully, and part of the reason for that is? Because Pet dogs are not allowed to be there at all. I often have to decide whether I want to go to a particular festival or public market or farmers market, And deal with the stress of a large number of poorly controlled pet dogs, or whether I just skip it, which is not a choice I feel that I should have to make. I would say out of every hundred pet dogs I encounter there are one or two, where the dog is properly socialized, clean, well trained, and the owner is being attentive to, and managing behaviors of that dog. One or two out of every hundred, so unless you are one of the most amazing pet dog owners out there, and really listen to training From experts, like the one who has created this video, please don’t take your dogs into places as described in the third scenario here, you have a choice, whether or not to bring your dog, but for someone who needs a service dog, we don’t really have a choice, so please don’t make our lives harder, Just so you can have fun, because I also guarantee you that most of the time, you might be having fun, but trust me, your dog is not.
Great and informative, thank you!
Yeah as a teacher who is away from home 10 - 11 hours I would not crate my dog all day. Our vet recommended puppy daycare immediately and he loves it.
GREAT IDEA. COMMON SENSE IS 1 THING YOU NEED TO DO IN THESE DECISIONS
I learned early that my dog, a Pom, doesn't enjoy our local dog park. One day she was surrounded by three golden retrievers, who didn't belong in the small dog area, they had her on her back and sniffing her, she was terrified. Occasionally I will take her there if it looks empty and there is always one dog who comes in later who is aggressively friendly, that's when we leave.
Excellent advice. The only thing I think you got backwards was the chihuahua and the "wild and crazy" chocolate lab. 😂
In my experience, anyway 😊. Thanks for all you do for dogs and their parents. 👍
In Sweden it is not a allowed to leave a dog in a crate for a hole day. Its not allowed to leave them home over 6 hours. Older dogs and puppies is 4 hours. And they need to have some space in the home, At least 1-2 rooms. In crate ok for like an hour NO more!
This sound horrible, no wonder dog attacks in USA is so high. Poor dogs.
Another place to be very careful is pet supply stores. I have a small dog and had another patron warn me, “My dogs don’t like small dogs!”. One can question why someone would bring unfriendly dogs to a pet supply store, but since people do, and since many dogs get excited by the food smells and toys and other dogs, I avoid bringing my dog.
I wish I saw this before I got my dog. I had no idea that dog parks were so bad until after I probably traumatized my dog. It’s probably why he is so reactive now.
I love your videos! And agreed!! I don’t take our dogs to these places. The only thing is crating dogs for 8-9 hours a day is just something I don’t want to do. My dog stays in the living room (not the whole house) when I go out. They don’t do anything but sleep (I have a pup cam). If they’re behaving and calm it’s ok right? 😊🤔
Excellent points! I also include Pet Stores like petco. Again, almost to e same reasons as the dog park!
The last point, social events….. Unless it’s a service dog….like my GSD. 😀
Thank you for your info!!!
My small dog park doesnt have any fences. I said to one of my neighbours maybe they should put up a safety fence. He said absolutely NOT. By not having any fences people can only bring well behaved dogs. The park has streets and traffic on 3 sides.
"Wild and crazy chocolate lab" how did you meet my Buckaroo? I am enjoying these videos, and learning a lot!
Also with doggy daycare, there should be a behavior and training test for entry. If they just take any dog and are not selective then you should say a hard no. They should be trainers also and make sure your dog is following rules at all times. The play should be more structured play, like runs, and swimming, where the focus in on the humans and not the other dogs.
Our dog was attacked at a dog park and the owner did nothing. Luckily she wasn't hurt but she was terrified and aggressive of other dogs after that until we socialized her more.
I agree! Good post! 👍👍
I’ve seen a few members-only dog parks. You pay a membership fee and each dog is vetted - they have to provide proof of vaccination and have size appropriate play hours and a dog can be expelled for behavior issues. This might be the way to go if you really like the idea of a dog park.
My dog will never be taken to a dog park. I have always thought they were a bad idea for the reasons you mentioned.
Yeahhhh unfortunately not everyone that takes their dogs to the dog parks have proper etiquette and do NOT have trainings taken seriously… lack of recall training is a huge problem with most people that go to dog parks .
There are lots of issues. I can't tell you how many owners I see constantly walking around on the phone paying absolutely no attention to their dog (or pooping), or walk so far ahead while the dog is running around behind them and they have no idea what their dog is doing. So frustrating. And yes, I've noticed even more in the past 4 years especially dogs have not been taught any manners or how to appropriately greet other dogs etc etc. They are good dogs but have no manners and are bursting at the seams, no impulse control, or like you said recall etc etc.
@@beasport505 I solely take my dog to the dog park to practice commands with distractions or better when’s it’s empty in the morning I’ll let her off leash and when I see others approaching I’ll re-attach her leash as an extra precaution .. she is going to be 4 months in a couple days and she likes to stay in a very near vicinity of me so recall has not been an issue so far . she is a bull terrier and very intelligent too .. I was expecting training to be difficult but it’s been good so far considering she has been labeled “impossible to train” and “stubborn breed”.. the main issue I have come across are aggressive smaller dogs and their owners letting them jump and nip on people & their dogs “they aren’t aggressive” lol …. It’s a bummer because my dog wants to play too but I don’t allow her to behave that way with smaller dogs because she is just heavy she can possibly hurt them by jumping on them so I just avoid other people’s dogs…I try to be considerate but not everyone bothers doing the same .. I don’t think it’s too hard to read their body language when you’ve spent some time and figure out what kind of personality they have.. a lot of people really don’t pay attention to their dogs social cues they are too busy like you said on the phone or being distracted by other things .. small attention to things like that really pay off too …
Crates should be used for transport not to confine them into a small space for long hours.
It’s 100 in Texas
lol
Def no dog park agree 100%
I hear your concerns but I think most of it boils down to being watchful, using common sense and doing research. Imagine if you applied this advance to your kid. It basically equates to them living in an bubble, being homeschooled and having as minimal interaction as possible with other kids. That's not the life I want for my dog. Anytime you walk outside there's risk, make reasonable choices, take precautions, odds are your pup will be fine. I admit there's examples that contradict my views, but it is night and day her mood, energy levle and sleep schedule on days she gets to play with other dogs vs not. Life without some risk isn't Life.
I have been taking my rescues to dog parks for about 15-20 years, I am very strategic when I do, I go off hours and on weekdays as opposed to weekends. Even if I do go on weekends, I try to avoid the typical time between 12-2 seems to be high traffic. Plus I enjoy walking my dogs and enjoy watching them constantly. It also helps that if you have a trained eye for dog body language reading both ours and others. So far, we have never had any incidents. The parks we go to are quite huge and so if it's not crazy crazy busy, it's easy to keep distance. About 10 football fields large.
I don’t take my dog to the dog park because she is That Dog.
Don't take dogs to outdoor music concerts, especially rock concerts. Often it's too hot for the dog, no shade and the sound is too loud for a dog. I watched a dog start to go into convulsions at an outdoor concert. The owner of the dog tied his dog up to the PA system. Seriously.
I would never crate a dog for several hours. I agree with you about the dog park but not about crating a dog all day. I think it's better to hire a dog walker or sitter than to crate a dog all day. A dog in a crate isn't being mentally or physically stimulated.
Dog parks...Yes, I learned my lesson. I had a 45 lb aussiedoodle female and we went to the local dog park. I worriedly observed all the people who let their dogs out at the car so the dogs went racing to the gate all excited. They would then come thru the gate hyper excited and race around, nipping and chasing other dogs.
Then there was the people. Some of them are just off the wall crazy. Bringing untrained unsupervised unsocialized breeds like pitbulls and letting them loose and acting like they're just little babies when obviously they were acting very aggressively.
Then there was a story about the two German shepherds that came together. They attacked a poodle and killed it in the park.
Then there was a lady who would bring her 18-month-old toddler and leave the child toddling around the dogs, I'm trying to pet all of the dogs unsupervised and unwatched. It horrified me as some dogs were oftentimes being very aggressive running around snapping at everything.
I finally gave up and started going very early in the morning right after the sun came up. I usually had the park alone. But then one morning, a man came with his full grown 100 lb male Great Dane. It was a very large park but for some reason both he and the dog gravitated towards us. Then the Great Dane started getting really excited and zooming curcles around us. Suddenly it turned and ran straight at my dog hitting her full-on in the chest knocking her, yelping, 10 ft away. Then it sweved again and in a split second it ran straight at my knees. I thought oh my gosh here goes my knees. At the last millisecond, the dog swerved away. All of this happened quicker than I can tell it. The man kept walking along calmly, totally ignoring what his dog was doing. I didn't dare say anything in an angry tone for fear that this would be enough to set the Great Dane off. My dog picked herself up very shakily, started looking very worried and upset and in pain. I went to her calmly, snapped her leash on, and encouraged her to follow me We walked away from those two as calmly and quickly as we could without looking like we were running. I got in the car and I never went back. The man who had gone out of his way to be walking within a few feet of us, never looked at us or even acted like he noticed that we had left. Weird.
My girl didn't suffer any permanent injury except to her psyche. She became very fearful of other dogs especially male dogs. In the future whenever she saw a male dog she began to be extremely aggressive on the leash barking and snarling and growling. She wouldn't let a male dog get close to her again. She could tell the difference between male and female from several yards away and began barking before they were close.
I tried to rescue a Great Dane once....a 95 lb male that had been on its chain most of its life. That dog became aggressive and nothing that I could do would help him. We sought professional help but to tell you the truth the professionals were afraid of him too. Whenever he started playing he began to get hyper excited, his hackles raised and then he would begin to turn aggressive. So I was unwilling to do a single thing that might cause a hyper excited GD dog, running circles around us loose in the park, that was on the verge of becoming too excited, to become aggressive....except to get out of Dodge. And stay out. I never darkened the gateway of a dog park again.
100% agree, "NO" to dog parks
My Great Pyrenees got poisoned at at dog park in Galveston Tx
The vet said it was some kind of street drugs-
some teens kept calling her over
We almost lost her !!
I never liked the idea of dog parks for all the reasons you mentioned
It only takes one irresponsible owner to lead to tragedy at the dog park. After witnessing an owner who was unable to keep his large dog from mauling (and probably killing) a small dog in a park, I decided not to risk it. Some owners really cannot be trusted.
Hmmm we do our off leash dog park every day. We walk 3 k’s. He sniffs and runs, plays, swims in the summer. We love it! Sometimes we take a ball and play.
I had a Westie killed at a dog park by a mastiff who was wearing a muzzle which had not been attached properly. The owner just shrugged & said “looked like a rabbit.” Never again.
Dog parks are fine, but wouldn’t make it a regular occurrence. If you do it in the beginning when they younger/a puppy it will make walks harder (wanting to play with every dog that passes)
Thank you ❤
The dog park I go to a lot I know almost every dog . It's a small dog park compared to the other dog parks in the area . I have seen 10 week old puppies , aggressive dogs at the bigger dog parks .:(
I went once with a friend and her dog. There was 1 other dog there. Well the other dog bit my 9 month old border collie and then the dog and the owner fled the dog park. I never did get any information which resulted in a veterinarian visit, wound control and a rabies shot (I was so upset with another rabies shot at that age). I have never been back!
It's astounding that one rabies shot is not enough at that young age. It should.
I like out of state by myself and my dog I don't have anyone to watch him and im gone for work 10 hrs a day doggy daycare is the best thing for my dog
Agree
Can we train a husky to be at home by themselves for an hour or so?
I went to a dog park just once after my dog was well trained because they'd opened the 1st one in my city. I couldn't wait to leave and never go again. It was full of horribly behaved dogs that shouldn't have been allowed off leash and really bad pet parents ejo were totally ignoring what thier dogs were doing. I was jumped on and bit on the backside just after entering and before taking my dog off her leash. Thankfully it didn't break the skin just tore my pants. The pet owner did nothing. When I told the dogs owner who was busy on her phone then turned to pick up my dog to leave, her and her dog had disappeared in an instant. I only allow my dogs to be around dogs I know are safe and well behaved.
Do you have any advice for calming my dog down in parking lots? When we go to the vet to monitor his weight or when we get him groomed, he gets so nervous in the parking lot.
I take my dog to classes twice a week, and what we learned there from the beginning is that "if it's scary, feed it!"
Basically, put treats (if your dog is already scared, I'd recommend very high value treats) around the car as the dog comes out to encourage the dog to move around but the food will give it something positive to focus on.
I did this with my puppy and horses, bikes, prams, buses, strangers coming towards us etc. Some things, like bikes, we did in classes initially so his first experiences were positive. For the horses, I found a field with a horse at the other end and walked along it and treated the dog for not paying any attention when the horse moved. After a couple times, the horse was right by the fence we walk past so I walked backwards and forwards in front of the horse with my puppy and fed him whenever he was closest to the horse. Then I kicked it up a notch and made him sit near the horse (never touching it, just close to where it was looking over the fence) and he would get treats for ignoring the horse. Now he is completely unfazed by horses, sheep, etc. He doesn't pay much attention to them and I can trust him not to bark and spook them.
He used to get really scared of joggers coming towards us, so I did the exact same thing whenever I saw a jogger down the road. When he's already nervous or scared of something it can take a little longer, but I find with consistency and time you can really teach a dog to make a positive association and gain confidence back. If your dog loves playing tug, that's a great way to do it too. If your dog learns that every time you stop in a car park, he gets to play his favourite game with a favourite toy, he will start looking forward to those places. Definitely find good opportunities, like starting in car parks that are empty or almost empty, then building up gradually.
She said it, "not until they're ready"
Not everyone lives in a rural area or owns acreage where dogs can run off leash. Dog parks are often the only places urban families can use for allowing their dogs to run free. I believe these leash rules have come about as a result irresponsible owners who have not trained their dogs.
Don't agree. Had an 8 year old rescue that did not like others dogs.. but I reconditioned her, she was then so happy to be in the park. She was excited and pulled to get in. My dog learned to love being around other dogs,... you should not avoid, you should make them feel safe and happy in those environment. Good questions to ask for a day care. All my dogs did not like crate, .... and I would never leave them along more that 4 hours a day. And my dog would rather be with me at outdoor events, ... then be alone and tressed. They are pack animals. Give pack mentality..rather than isolation.
Dog parks are like child parks be Vigilant. Not all dogs/children are nice. Watch your dog! Dog walkers can be excellent especially for the elderly/ill etc.
It just sounds cruel
To crate a dog all day while
Your a work. What about when they have to use the restroom. Not
Ok!!! 😢
fear is very dangerous we cant let our fear lock us in the house or on the driveway.
"I wish my dog was as well behaved as yours are." I hate when people tell me that. Should I be truthful or being polite?
I could say "thank you" and leave it there or I could say what I really think. "Your dog will never have any chance at this kind of inclusion because you only wish for improvement instead of putting in the work needed to make it happen."
For example; I took my dogs to the cities fireworks display. Everyone there kept asking why I wasn't worried about them freaking out. "No worries." I said. They didn't even care. My dogs are bomb proof because they have been around fireworks, gun ranges, nail guns, etc., all their lives. To them, scary stuff tastes like hot dogs and new tennis balls.
I really want to take my dog to the beach or to the lake … maybe hiking .
Thank you. Might be controversial but perfectly understandable.
Who makes the dog crate at 7:51? that is nice
It’s called Diggs
It didnt take me long to figure out dog parks, and there are a lot here, are essentially Canine MMA arenas. Fortunately, this area is surrounded by a lot of public land. Easy to get out with him.
at about 6:50, shows a large dog being put into a crate that is far too small..... Bad! Bad presenter!
Here in the states there is a new respiratory virus going around, meeting other dogs may not be the best idea, especially if there is no way to know where the other dogs have been.
Dog parks sound like Public school…