Dogs on Trails...here I go again!

[bikeCOLORADO]

Riding on sweet technical singletrack this morning. Fantastic city park...with WELL POSTED leash signs everywhere.

We happen upon two hikers and their two dogs...one dog goes after my buddy - not breaking the skin but managing to rip a huge hole in the arm of his brand new $80 winter riding jersey.

Without alienating hikers and dog lovers...any ideas on how to get people to obey the stinking leash laws??????

[jatkins679]

Originally posted by bikeCOLORADO
We happen upon two hikers and their two dogs...one dog goes after my buddy - not breaking the skin but managing to rip a huge hole in the arm of his brand new $80 winter riding jersey.

Is your buddy going to go after the dog owner to pay for the jersey? If it were me, I would.

[Gordon P]

Complain, complain, complain! I was chased by a pit bull once while rollerblading in a large city park (400+ hectares), fortunately I was on a long decline and was able to out skate the dog. This also happened in an “on leash” area and the owner did nothing to stop his dog. My roommate at the time worked at this park and he assured me that dogs (owners) were a very big problem, as they caused environmental damage to the natural areas by running, owners not cleaning up their dog’s waste and generally disturbing other visitors and wildlife. He found that the “dog lobby” was to powerful, and making change was nearly impossible.

I have also found that dogs on leashes are a problem as well. The dogs leash will sometimes block the bike path, especially those long retractable types of leashes that allow a dog to walk metres from its owner. I once seen a dog go under a cyclist wheel this way. I guess if complaining goes nowhere use pepper spray (on the owner preferably) to defend yourself. I think it is great that dogs can get out and get some fresh air and they should not be banned from parks. However, irresponsible dog owners will ruin it for those who do keep their animals under control at all times. Also, the owners should be held legally responsible for any damage they do and receive heavy fines for those who don’t clean up after their dog.
:mad:
I once had an apartment across from a “dog park” which was just a big defecation field. Neither children nor adults could use the park because the waste was everywhere and the smell was very bad.

[Chris L]

I agree with Gordon P. Dob them in if they're breaking the laws.

[1oldRoadie]

If you do not believe me...ask my dog! I love her, she is a friend and confidante. I will protect her as best I can. That means I will keep her in the house, in a fenced area she can not get out of, or on a leash.

Anyone that lets a dog run loose in a populated area is an *****hole!!!!!!

They neither love their dog nor have respect for other people, or the law. They should be prosecuted and there animal taken away and given to someone who would respect them.

[bikeCOLORADO]

Right on...I'm going to bring it up with the City Park Service and start pressing the issue from there. This in-town park is so huge that there are TWO designated areas within the park where pet owners are legally allowed to "de-leash" and let the dogs run free. Unfortunately none of the owners are responsible enough to leash up anywhere else in the park.

[jatkins679]

Originally posted by Gordon P
I once had an apartment across from a “dog park” which was just a big defecation field. Neither children nor adults could use the park because the waste was everywhere and the smell was very bad.

Kinda interesting: Boulder CO has a big problem with irresponsible dog owners not cleaning up after their dogs in some of their parks:

http://www.smahotels.com/ecotone/Sanitas.htm

Admittedly, the guy who does this survey stuff is a little bit aggressive IMHO (he's been arrested for harrassing dog owners before). But his GPS surveys of dog droppings is amazing, especially when you consider the close proximity to trash cans and bags. Man, it looks from the maps like a real, real mess. I get the smell is terrible.

Dog owners can act as irresponsibly as they want. What it comes down to, though, is when someone gets hurt due to their irresponsible behavior, it's going to get ugly and they're going to quite possibly find themselves on the bad end of a lawsuit.

[Gordon P]

This in-town park is so huge that there are TWO designated areas within the park where pet owners are legally allowed to "de-leash" and let the dogs run free. Unfortunately none of the owners are responsible enough to leash up anywhere else in the park.

It sounds like it is an enforcement issue; so complain in writing to the authorities when this happens and point out that it is a safety issue. People are attacked by dogs all the time, so when you see dog owners allowing their dogs to run amok in an on-leash area, politely point out that for your safety and that of the dog, his/her animal should be on a leash and that there are off-leash areas. If they get aggressive, then use the pepper spray.

[greg360]

We live in a whacky society, no matter where you live these days (except in a dictatorship), where opposing interests compete to get their way by force of law.
The only lawmakers/politicians that prosper in such a system are the ones who pass the laws that get votes from one camp, but provide litle means for enforcement of those laws, which gets votes from the opposing camp.
If anybody knows of a way to rid democracy of this weakness, we need to hear it.

[D*Alex]

Hmmm....
Around here, riding your bike off-road in any park is illegal. It's also illegal for you to have an unleashed dog in any park, save for one. I really think they need to fence in this area, but it never seems to get done.

[Roughstuff]

Heck man on our bike path we have dogs, ducks, geese, bears, maybe a fox or two....that doesn't count the aliens...

roughstuff

P.S. or us republicans

[nathank]

well, i agree that dog owners should be responsible for their dogs' actions as well as any damage they do - i.e. the owner should pay for a new jersey for your friend.

but i do not like blanket leash laws - i mean having leash laws in some parks and some areas is a good idea especially if it is really crowded - but there should also be areas and parks where dogs can run free. especially larger and less crowded parks.

furthermore, some dogs and their owners are quite well-behaved and the dogs are always under control whether on leash or not and other dogs are uncontrolled and a menace when on a leash.

i have not had my dog with me in 6 years now - he is on my parent's farm because i have moved around and lived in apartments without enough space for a 90lb dog - and i have seen plenty of ill-behaved dogs...

but for instance, my dog as well as the dogs of a few friends were well trained so they could go unleashed on mountain bike rides or hiking trips and knew to get out of the way of other bikers as well as not mess with other people or dogs (ok, he would chase rabbits and cats) and i always hated being on relatively sparely-populated trails in huge parks with a blanket leash-law, so i was breaking the law by my well-behaved dog being free on the trails. you cannot have a good "mountain bike" dog that stays on a leash: bombing down a trail at 30+mph with a 90lb dog on a leash is just not safe...

now dog poop i can understand as a problem. my dog always went in our yard, but i think many people take dogs regularly to the park for daily "usage" and these people should clean it up themselves.

[Guest]

I used to like dogs... that is, until I started riding. Now, I can't stand them.

Ok, don't hate the player, hate the game... I know the saying! And I know my anger is misdirected. It's the stupid owners who should be blamed, not the dogs. Dogs are only as smart as the people who own them, and sometimes, those people are pretty ignorant.

I get sick and tired of riding the bike path and seeing dumb owners with their dogs riding on the path pulling their dogs alongside them, or running/walking the path with their dogs. Simply put, dogs should not be allowed on the bike path, period. If they can't keep their dogs off to the right of them on the grass, then they shouldn't bring their dogs at all. I find it annoying and worriesome that everytime I see a dog, I have to tense up and wait to see what the dog's behavior will be as I'm approaching before I can decide how I'm going to ride past them. Half the time, when the dogs see me coming, they want to jump into the path and try to jump on me. The owner then reacts and pulls the dog down as I'm riding by, but it's already too late- I've swerved, or slowed down or whatever to avoid the dog. My ride has been interrupted, and I'm p*ssed. It's an inconvenience and an annoyance, and I'm tired of it.

Yesterday, I decided to ride the bike path from the halfway point to the southside end of the path and back. Unfortunately, the city did not inform anyone that there would be some walk-a-thon also occuring that day. There were 500+ people on the path, all walking leisurely. By the time I figured out what was happening, it was too late to turn back. What made the whole thing worse was that some of these idiots brought their dogs along. Dogs were interacting with other dogs, cyclists, and other people on the path. It was a nightmare. My ride was ruined.

I really hope I get to work with the city this summer, because I'm going to push really hard for some legislation that keeps dogs off the path, and stiff fines for dumb dog owners who get caught on the path with their dogs. There are plenty of parks and areas where they can go and let their dogs roam freely, and if they don't think the parks are adequate, they shouldn't have dogs because they can't provide the dogs with places for them to run freely. The path is not their answer for them. It becomes the problem for every person using the path that has to deal with that dog.

Koffee