All pets MUST be on a leash - except yours...

[kdickinson]

A rule is meaningless without enforcement. We have gone to the park office and report an off leash dog.

[Rocinante]

Originally Posted by kscherzi

I find it annoying that horses are allowed on trails when dogs are not. Horses are terribly destructive to a trail. They rip up rocks, loosen the soil, create erosion, leave piles of poop for long distances forcing us to hike through it and deal with the horseflies. By comparison a dog is nothing.

Gotta say, I'm with you there. We were hiking in Glacier NP on a trail shared by humans and hordes of horses. It was a muddy, poopy disaster of a trail. Just a terrible experience. We made the best of it, but I agree that horses on trails in National Parks do some serious damage.

[3wd67rg]

Originally Posted by kscherzi

I keep my shorthair pointer leashed unless he's working, and in that case its a electronic leash (Sportdog). He is unleashed in my backyard. I have a permanently attached to the garage long rope while he's with me in the front yard. When not retrieving he mostly likes to sleep, still I prefer he's leashed as I'd hate for him to run after something and be hit by a car.

I do wish that state and national parks would allow dogs on some low volume trails (leashed is okay with me) outside the tourist areas, and not just the fire road. It's otherwise hard to camp and keep the dog exercised on days when we are out and about.

I find it annoying that horses are allowed on trails when dogs are not. Horses are terribly destructive to a trail. They rip up rocks, loosen the soil, create erosion, leave piles of poop for long distances forcing us to hike through it and deal with the horseflies. By comparison a dog is nothing.

Here Here! My dog ALWAYS, every single time without fail, leaves the trail to poop. I didn't train him to do this, I believe he learned it as a survival technique after he ran away from whomever was abusing him. Even dogs who do, leave these tiny poops, while horses leave Gigantuan piles of horse crap in the middle of the trail. And no one makes their owners get down and scoop that up. Why?

[rvb]

I was camping in an Arkansas state park when a man came walking by with a German Shepherd. The park had a must be on a leash rule and the dog was walking by his side carrying his own leash in his mouth. Since I found it curious I asked his owner and he was an off duty policeman and his dog was a highly trained police dog. He said the rule even applied to him but didn't stipulate who had to hold the lead so he let the dog carry his own leash to be in compliance. The dog was trained to responded to both voice and hand commands and was the best trained dog I have ever seen. We had a nice visit and I felt very secure in that park that night.

[kscherzi]

I disagree about pit bulls. Pit Bulls were specifically bred to fight other dogs. Their jaws are exceptionally strong and once engaged in a fight they don't want to stop. Unlike other dog breeds that were bred to do something useful, Pit Bulls were just bred to kill. Here's especially why I hate pit bulls.

Last summer a off leash pit bull attacked my friends boxer at a public beach. His boxer is my shorthairs best buddy. At about 80 pounds his boxer is no small dog and he tried to fight back but suffered terrible wounds. Recovery took months and cost a lot. The pit bull owner, a vagrant, just didn't give a sh_t and walked away.

Just this past spring my wife's employee 14 year old daughter was sitting in their van holding their new puppy with the sliding door open as it was warm at her school after hours . Her mom was inside doing something. An off leash pit bull belonging to another teacher just decided to leap into the van and take the puppy from her arms. Screaming and crying she had to watch while that pit bull mauled her puppy to death.

There's good reason for pit bull bans at many campgrounds. When at a dog park with my dog and a pit bull shows up, I immediately leave.

Pit Bulls are like a keeping a live grenade in the house. They're both fine till they're not.

[xrvr]

Originally Posted by PammieSue

I know there are some out there, but I have never in my 56 years of life met a bad pitbull. NEVER. They have all been big cuddly babies.

When any dog behaves badly, look to the master. That dog was trained to act that way. No dog is inherently bad. Labeling an entire breed of dog to be vicious or bad or killers is equal to being racist. If you don't judge people before you meet them, then please offer the same courtesy to all dogs.

A big cuddly pit bull or other large dog can turn on a small leashed dog and kill it before you can react. Most large dogs are taught to play with doggy toys which resemble cats or small dogs. Tug of war playing is fun but teaches the dog that small animals are just like toys. There is no gray area here, all dogs must be leashed for protection of all.

[airstream 69]

I certainly agree that dogs should remain on leash when around others for sure, and appreciate the remarks. I also appreciate that my children enjoy the family trips, the fun and friends made along the way and the occasional screaming that kids do when in the great outdoors.

[AWCHIEF]

I have a neighbor that insist on having pit bulls. One was shot by a deputy for attacking another neighbors child after getting out of the back yard. This idiot gets another pit bull. It also escaped from a chain staked in his front yard. A deputy was called about the dog running free. After again attacking the deputy the mut was shot. The owner now has a court order stoping him from owning any more dogs. Guess what? He got another pit bull. The deputies were called and the fool was arrested and the dog taken to the shelter. This happened two days ago. I saw him back home last night.

[Dexterpix]

The issue is not a leash, it is a total lack of control of their dog. I could care less if your dog is leashed or not. Just keep it under control. Watch most of the dog owners who's dogs run free out of control and their children do exactly the same. The problem is a lack of "Give A Sh&t" most people have about how their actions effect others.

My dog is not leashed, but no one would know because it is my responsibility (I know that's a big word now a days) to keep her under my control at all times.

Don't blame the dog, blame the owner. That's why we have leash laws to begin with. Not for the minority of responsible dog owners, but for the majority of "I can't be bothered to train my dog" dog owners in the world.

Joe D

[GettinAway]

We were going to take our pup this summer for 8 nights in Colo. We've decided to leave him in a kennel. Tough decision for us, as he's very attached. But we kayak, fish, shop, eat out a lot. I just don't want to leave him locked in the trailer in a crate with a bark collar on. Maybe that would still be better than a kennel.
I really do not like barking dogs in campgrounds, even if they are in your $1mm motor coach. It just ruins everything for us. So, I'm not going to subject my camping neighbors to our pup. Hopefully he will be ready next year..
Good thread so far.
As a side note my son had a pit bull, he misses him, I don't, and I love campfires..)

[McDave]

Originally Posted by Dexterpix

The issue is not a leash, it is a total lack of control of their dog. I could care less if your dog is leashed or not. Just keep it under control. Watch most of the dog owners who's dogs run free out of control and their children do exactly the same. The problem is a lack of "Give A Sh&t" most people have about how their actions effect others.

My dog is not leashed, but no one would know because it is my responsibility (I know that's a big word now a days) to keep her under my control at all times.

Don't blame the dog, blame the owner. That's why we have leash laws to begin with. Not for the minority of responsible dog owners, but for the majority of "I can't be bothered to train my dog" dog owners in the world.

Joe D

Exactly. If my dog were to go into your camp and bother you, I would be the last to object if you complain to me or report me. If she and I are minding our own business in our own camp, we welcome the company of any friendly people, with or without dogs, but if you don't like that, all I can do is promise you that neither I nor my dog will ever bother you in your camp.

The earlier story about the police dog carrying its own leash reminds me of something that happened recently at an archery tournament I attended. After the tournament, when we were waiting for the scores to be tallied, my dog and another dog became bored and proceeded to romp together in the meadow we were in. One of the officials was watching us, and came up to me and asked if I had a leash for my dog. I pulled the leash out of my pocket and showed it to him. He said, "Well, get it on her. Tournament rules are no unleashed dogs." At that moment, I noticed that the other dog was trailing a leash, and its owner hadn't been talked to. Putting two and two together, I attached the leash to my dog, after which they continued to romp unbothered. I don't how it made any difference that my dog was trailing her leash, but if it made the tournament official happy, then I'm happy. Rules are rules, after all.

[aftermath]

I am not a dog owner. I do like dogs, at least well behaved ones, but I don't have the necessary tools to be a good owner so I have chosen to enjoy other people's dogs.

I agree with the leash laws, especially in the national parks. "Don't worry, he won't bite" is the attitude of most owners. The problem here is that a lot of them will or at least act in a menacing way. My wife is still terrified of boxers because she was attacked by one when she was a little girl.

As the "owners" of the parks, our government (actually we the tax payers) they are not only protecting visitors but their own interests in requiring dogs to be leashed. I agree with the ban from trails. Horses do not attack other horses nor do they bite people.

I do enjoy the discussion about pit bulls. It comes down to this. A pit bull is an animal bred to kill. Generation after generation have been trained to fight to the death. If you are an owner who, because of your great skills at dog training, can overcome these hereditary factors then you must be some kind of trainer. Best wishes to you and yours should your dog snap at the wrong moment.

So, if there is a leash law, follow it. Tie your dogs up and everyone will be better off for it.

[Plasma800]

Originally Posted by SteveSueMac

I don't mean to be judgmental, but when I come to a campground that says all pets must be on a leash, I welcome that. I know Daisy would love to be off leash all day long and I also know as adorable as she is, she'd knock down a kid or eat someone's picnic or dump on their site....dogs are dogs.

I also know when Daisy is on a leash and other dogs aren't, she works herself in to a lather. She's never territorial off leash, but on her leash, it's as though she sees herself at a disadvantage when she sees "free range dogs" running around. And if they wander on to our site while she's leashed, she gets VERY upset.

This campground I'm in says very plainly on their website and signs on entry that all dogs must be on a leash. So far, at least two families don't care about that and it ticks me off. 😡. I just had to ask an owner to control his dog (twice Daisy's size) wandering in to our site when Daisy was CLEARLY upset about it and howling/whining. I needed to tell him to control his dog? In those circumstances??? 😡

Later today - as we do anytime we take her camping - we'll go to a local off leash park and let her run around with the other pooches. But at the campground, is it asking too much to expect folks to be reasonable? 😳

And don't get me started on seeing dog turds that owners don't pick up...

(I know - you're expecting, "and get off my lawn!" next, but honestly, is it too much to expect pet owners to demonstrate common courtesy?)

i get it, bugs me too.

[AWCHIEF]

Reference my last post, just talked to my idiot pit bull owning neighbor. He bonded out and has a pending court date in two weeks. Turns out he was reported to the Sheriffs Office by a city police officer that lives on his other side. It was his son that was bitten.