The dog park is a magical place where dogs play the day away with their dog buddies and their owners are trapped in a land of cuteness overload. Dogs and their humans, learn much needed socialization skills and get to expend their energy running around and wrestling. However, this magical place does have rules and in order to keep the positive experiences happening, we have to follow them. Here is a list of some major dog park faux-pas that some owners are guilty of. Hopefully you can avoid them in the future!
1. Leaving Your Dog Unattended: Have an errand you need to run? Did you leave your stove on? Well, bring your dog with you. The dog park is not a day care. You are completely responsible for your dog and you must remain in the park.
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- 1. Leaving Your Dog Unattended: Have an errand you need to run? Did you leave your stove on? Well, bring your dog with you. The dog park is not a day care. You are completely responsible for your dog and you must remain in the park.
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- 2. Not Picking Up After Your Dog: Nobody likes to step in dog poop. Nobody likes cleaning the poop out from dogs paws and fur. Nobody likes a smelly dog park. It is usually up to the dog owners to keep the park as clean as possible. Most parks provide poop-bags or shovels and, if not, you can always ask your fellow dog owners if they can spare a bag.
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- 3. Bringing An Aggressive Dog Into The Park: Know the temperament of your dog. Is it easily frightened? Does it react poorly in hyper situations with other dogs? Is it possessive? Not all dogs are suitable for the dog park and are sometimes much happier one-on-one with you.
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- 4. Eating Human Food: Lunch time? Eat before or after the park. Need a snack? You’re going to have to wait. Bringing in human food is a big no-no as you can attract all the dogs and possibly cause a food possessive situation.
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- 5. Giving Treats To Other Dogs Without Permission: Just like their human best friends dog also have allergies and can be intolerant to certain foods. You don’t know what sort of diet the dog has or if it is even allowed treats. It is best to concern yourself with your own dog’s needs.
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- 6. Spending More Time Looking At Your Phone Than Your Dog: We live in a world of distractions and our smartphones are just another one to add to the pile. A bad situation can occur in seconds at the dog park and you could miss your chance to avoid it if you are glued to your phone. Other owners don’t want to have to deal with your unruly dog. Stay alert and wait to Instagram later.
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- 7. Bringing An Unvaccinated Dog Into The Park: Everyone wants their dog to be as healthy as possible and dog parks can be an easy place to pass on parasites and other diseases. Help prevent the spread of these diseases by vaccinating your dog before bring them to the park.
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- 8. Small Dogs In The Large Dog Area: Little dogs can be seen as prey by larger dogs and they can become the object of their desire. Swooping in and picking up your little dog to save it can also aggravate the situation because it appears to the larger dog that you are playing a game.
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- 9. Bringing In A Dog That Is In Heat Or Isn’t Spayed/Neutered: This is a pretty common faux-pas and happens way more than it should. Most people are not ready to care for an unexpected litter of puppies and the dog park isn’t the place for doggy copulation. Unaltered dogs can stir up aggression and cause tense situations.
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- 10. Allowing Your Dog To Bully Other Dogs: Letting your dog persistently overwhelm another dog is asking for a dog fight and possibly an owner fight. Neck-biting, bouncing and pushing a dog that isn’t responding positively can result in an aggressive bite. Keep an eye out for the signs of a dog that is being bullied (cowering, snarling and lowered tail) and be sure to call your dog back over.
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- 11. Not Closing The Gate: You wouldn’t leave your front door open with pets and children in the house, so why do this at the dog park? It’s very annoying to dog owners when others don’t try to keep the dogs safe. Do you part and close the gates. It’s probably the easiest thing you can do.
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