By Minou Tpain

Dog Parks

We all want the best for our dogs. When we first acquire one, we make sure we have everything we need; bowls, leashes, crate, bedding, toys, brushes, treats, etc. We are ready to give them their best life.

We know dogs love to run and play so we decide what better way then to bring them to a dog park to play with their buddies.
BUT-the dogs at a dog park are not your dog’s buddies. They are unfamiliar dogs all with different temperaments, skills, thresholds and behaviors; none of which you are aware of.

So you bring your dog to a dog park thinking your giving him what he needs but then a few weeks later you start noticing your once mild dog is now behaving differently on walks, lunging, pulling and barking at dogs.

What happened?

At a dog park, you are almost always guaranteed to encounter dogs that have no boundaries, no structure, no recall and honestly it’s their only way of exhausting their energy so they are just looking for ways to release this frustration and your dog will most likely be the target. This ultimately is going to result in your dog viewing other dogs in a negative way, leaving them
feeling fearful and anxious around them.

Or the complete opposite can happen, your dog can have a grand ol’ time, enjoying every minute of being able to walk up to every single dog and greet them whenever they want. But here lies the problem with that, at a dog park, your dog has access to dogs, unfamiliar dogs and is able to go up to any dog at any time and greet. So what happens when your dog is leashed and unable to freely greet? Frustration builds and turns to aggression. Now you have a reactive dog.

So if you can, avoid dog parks and find other fenced in areas for your dog to run. Invite friends with dogs that your dog is familiar with and enjoys playing with.

For more information visit my post “Are Doggy Play Dates OK?” from January 22.

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