Taking the Dog out of Dog Park

We are fortunate here in Ottawa to have a couple of beautiful dog parks where you can take dogs to roam free and run around off-leash.

As animal lovers and dog owners, we have always taken advantage of our close proximity to Bruce Pit, Ottawa's West End dog park. We have been taking Rudy there regularly for his entire life, and started taking him there when he was about three months old (he is six years old now). When Thing 1 was a baby and trekking over to the park was much easier than it is now, I used to walk Rudy there every single morning, seven days a week. I'd carry Thing 1 in my baby carrier and we'd hike through the trails with Rudy running free and following us through the woods.

It's a beautiful park. It encompasses several acres of wooded area, paths and open fields with plenty of room for hundreds of dogs to run free and play. On a weekend at mid-day, it is not uncommon for a couple hundred dogs and their owners to be at the Pit. Now that we have three Things, our excursions to the park are fewer, but they still exist.

We took advantage of today's beautiful spring-like weather to take the kids and the dog to the Pit just shortly before lunch. Things 1 and 2 are hearty enough to walk the trails now (at other times we have pushed them in our double stroller or pulled them in the wagon), and I carried Thing 3 on my back in her backpack. We were at the park less than ten minutes when we approached a group of people walking their Boxer. There were several adults and a young girl. I am always slightly timid around bigger dogs, as Rudy has had a couple of run-ins in the past where a larger dog has been very aggressive with him.

I should note that Rudy is a very social dog and is well adjusted and in tune with the "unspoken" rules of pet behaviour at the dog park. He has completed dog obedience courses and is very comfortable around other dogs. He is submissive and will lie down or roll over when he is hassled by another dog. He plays well with other dogs and is an extremely friendly pet.

Before I knew it, this Boxer was playing very aggressively with Rudy. I firmly said "Rudy, come" and tried to urge him away from the other dog - I could see early on this was going down a bad path. Rudy backed down and tried to walk away but the Boxer wouldn't have it and kept egging him on, jumping all over him. Within seconds he was starting to attack Rudy, biting at him and jumping on him aggressively. With Thing 3 on my back, there was no way I could bend over to pick Rudy up (something I have done in the past when he was attacked). The path was extremely icy. Paul had Things 1 and 2 by the hands and could also not let go because of the ice. We felt so utterly helpless. Eventually the owner managed to pull his dog off of Rudy, at which point the young girl with him states, within earshot of us, "Why does he always act like this?????".

THIS is what ticks me off. If this dog had exhibited aggressive behaviour in the past, why bring him to a public dog park and then proceed to let him off his leash? Why not keep him on his leash, put a muzzle on him, or - even better - STAY HOME?????? This is the third or fourth time this has happened to us in the past couple years, and I've just had it. Paul and I basically feel like we cannot go back. Irresponsible dog owners like this are making it impossible for families and friendly dogs to feel comfortable walking in this public park.

I've also heard stories of children getting bitten or attacked by dogs here as well, and there is no way I am going to put my kids in danger of getting hurt because some ridiculously careless dog owner brings his/her aggressive and uncontrollable dog to a public park. And, for the record, my children are typically belted into a stroller or wagon, although this was not the case today because the weather did not permit it. They have been well instructed never to approach a strange dog and they know well to never touch a dog they don't know.

Neighbours a few houses down from us had their dog attacked a few weeks ago at Bruce Pit. The dog (I'm not certain of the breed, but she is slightly smaller than Rudy, who is a 30 pound cocker spaniel) was mauled by a Pit Bull and was so terrified she ran out of the park and got lost. She was gone for 48 hours on two of the coldest nights of the entire winter. By some miracle, a woman found their dog, called them, and after several visits to the Vet, she lived and is recovering well. I thought about this incident this morning as we drove over to the park, and perhaps I lacked adequate judgment when I took my entire family over there today. To enjoy some time together and go for a hike on a beautiful, sunny, glorious March morning.

Thanks to the irresponsible, reckless behaviour shown by some Ottawa area pet owners, I truly doubt that we will go back. Get a clue, people. If you can't control your dog, or don't want to, don't take it to a PUBLIC dog park. And if there happens to be a next time, and one of your dogs decides to attack my absolutely precious cocker spaniel again, you can be guaranteed that I will a) kick your dog's ass, or b) take you to court.