When Lexi was younger, I took her to the dog park for several hours nearly every day. (Wish I had that kind of discretionary time now!) She became VERY well socialized from a young age. I think this was great for her. She learned how to interact with all breeds of dogs and of all sizes. Now, the only ones she hates are Jack Russells and Pomeranians. I know that if we see one of those, I better get her before she goes nuts!
Otherwise, Lexi loves to be at the dog park. But, I have to admit that she enjoys running through the woods FAR more than she does just the dog-dog interaction.
When we lived in Georgia, we used to go to UGA's intramural fields in Athens. They have a HUGE off leash dog area and running trails. Lexi could run for hours and chase squirrels and just be a dog. It was great.
Now that we live in Northern Virginia, there are far fewer places to take the dogs. They are opening up a new one, but get this, you have to PAY!! I can hardly believe it.The name of the park is Leesburg Canine Country Club. I've never been to a dog park where you had to have a membership to get in!! I'm not talking about a dog tag, you actually have to pay a membership! And it ain't cheap! I think for the two of them, it's $400 some odd dollars a year!! HOLY GEEZ!!
That's another reason I'm trying raise so much money for the doggie 4K!! I got the park to donate a year membership to the top fundraiser. I WANT THAT MEMBERSHIP!!! So if any of you wants to help us get it, please donate!! 
It's like killing two birds with one stone: It helps homeless dogs and helps us get closer to having an offleash area to be able to run!! www.firstgiving.org/bdawg
Well my B craves for playmates. We went to the park around here searching for the doggie area and found out the area is not closed in..Great. I guess nobody has the dame issues of not being able to have their dogs off the leash. Anyway Champ found a friend and so they started playing and the other dog (off the leash) ran off wanting Champ to follow. Being the good mommie that I am I ran with him on the leash chasing the other dog. By the way it was hailing out and their was snow and ice on the floor. Yeah the things we do for our babies
@BDawg1005:
…Now that we live in Northern Virginia, there are far fewer places to take the dogs. They are opening up a new one, but get this, you have to PAY!! I can hardly believe it.The name of the park is Leesburg Canine Country Club. I've never been to a dog park where you had to have a membership to get in!! I'm not talking about a dog tag, you actually have to pay a membership! And it ain't cheap! I think for the two of them, it's $400 some odd dollars a year!! HOLY GEEZ!!...
I confess that when I read that you have to pay, I was like, okay, they have to collect a nominal fee to keep up the grounds, provide water and probably waste bags and receptacles. Not so bad, I'd pay a fee. But then when you went on to say the fee would be over $400 a year…Good Dog! Do they have a bodyguard for each dog? They only serve Perrier water in sterling silvers bowls? Poop is scooped and disposed of by the Queen's Guard? Holy Moley!
I would love to take Stella but she is weird standing their growiling but it is not a growl i dont know how to describe it. Also if a nother dog tries to play w/ my vizsla when she is there she gets real mad and hair stands up every thing. So i am going to try the dog park w/ out Bela there and see how Stella does w/o her big boy there. I would love for her to go we go 3x a week for 2to 3 hours. But i do have to say one thing Stella is the boss a 17lbs she walks my big 70lbs Vizsla around the yard and house and is the 1st to eat and do whatever she wants and tells on her brother
Shannon
I personally am opposed to dog parks simply because most people don't watch their dogs, don't know their dogs attitudes, don't know dog behaviour. But, that being said, I do take my dogs to play dates with other dogs and I introduce Sugar to other dogs. If she doesn't get along she doesn't get off leash. And I tend to play one on one. I've seen too many bloody ends because of people who say, 'My dog gets along with other dogs' and then just lets them go, without even an introduction.
There are 2 that I am aware of. 1 in Westerville called Brooksedge Park off of Schrock rd. There is supposed to be one at Alum Creek at Africa but I have not visited it. Both are free.
During the summer we go almost daily. I go at any time busy or not. Our dogs are very social. I've noticed most people are very good at self policing. Any dog that shows aggression is asked to leave and does. Many people seem to have no idea how their dog will react in that situation- and how could they? For some, it is just to much. We started leaving Dash in the small dog part but he didn't get to run enough so we moved with the big dogs. We actually switch him back and forth to find a dog that runs as much as he does. He sort of takes over and claims the park as his own and for some reason the other dogs just ignore him or chase him.
I don't think they are for everyone for sure. If the owner is nervous, the dog will sense it and be on guard. And some dogs feel ganged up on. You know your dog better than anyone so listen to your gut.
We took Champ to the park yesturday, he loves it there. Sometimes I think he's not too sure how to play with other dogs, he kind of waits for there q. He starts out with a sniff then he does this really cute thing, he stands to the side of the other dog like saying O.k now you sniff me. Yesturday he saw a lab and was trying to play with him but didn't get a responds. A Bulldog came by and so the lab went to play with him and they kind of jumped on each others heads and looked like they were hugging each other. Well when the bulldog left, Champ went up to the lab, was straining his head to look up at him (the lab was 15 months old and about 3x our B's size) and he just jumped on the labs head and gave him what looked like a hug. I'm thinking wow he got the idea from watching them play. He's so smart. But then we saw a yorkie and Champ wasn't very gentle. He tried nipping him and actually grabbed a piece of the yorkies hair on his face and pulled. I immediatly grabbed champ, applied a little pressure to his mouth and apologized to both the yorkie and the owner. No harm was done but I don't allow this behavior. I do think it had to do with all the hair on the yorkie. My dog loves grabing our hair and pulling. Off the leash is not an option for us as much as we would like it to be. I feel for both our B's safety and other dogs. But I do enjoy those few times he seems to find a real play buddy and they just go at it, so the leash is not really an issue for us. He's enjoying himself and safe.
Your story is very familiar. Dash is very dominant and we noticed he does better with the larger dogs because they are a little tougher. He has been known to run up to the meanest looking dog in the place, nip him in the face and run! So we watch him very closely. We are baffled by the fact he seems to be oblivious to his size.
That's what my husband and I were saying yesturday. Our B does not care about size and he seems to want to play with every dog he sees.
This morning was a little bit upsetting for me. I took Champ to the park and they have an area where the dogs can be of leash although not fenced in so my B stays leashed. As I mentioned before Champ loves other dogs so I was excited to see them all playing and getting along. Well one particular dog seemed very excited, overerly excited, and he was playing with Champ a bit too rough for my comfort so I stared pulling Champ away. He didn't seem to be enjoying the play either. The owner just kept calling the dog (i guess she was too busy socializing with the other owners) and the dog kept coming back but more rough. It got to the point I covered Champ with my arms and wanted to pick him up. The airhead owner just came and said wow he is so stubborn. We walked away. I was upset because Champ was loving the other dogs but due to this one dog/owner his play time was cut short. What's with some of these people don't they realize that as loving as there pets might be at times, they are also capable of hurting? I'm glad we left because as we walked around again, we heard some owners yelling and then heard a dog cry out. Glad it wasn't my B.
Your dog is still a puppy right? I think you are smart to be cautious. I discipline others dogs as well as my own if they are messing with my dog. If Dash feels overwhelmed he just runs over in between my legs. Usually it is the other way around and I have to make Dash settle down.
and most of you probably don't agree with me but I allow the dogs to police themselves. However I never sit and chat with others without keeping one eye on my dog. I can tell when it is getting out of hand. Some breeds are talkers and people can automatically assume they are aggressive. I can't really explain it. I have had several years experience with all kinds of breeds so I know some of the ins and outs of their behavior. I totally agree that if your dog is overwhelmed it is best to go somewhere else. You don't want to ruin the experience for him. However, your body language can add to a dogs anxiety. If you are nervous about him being there, he will be to.
Yes I know about the energy and so I always stay calm. I usually let him fend for himself a bit since I think this is also new to him. He's 1 year old but we've only had him for 2 months and since he's a rescue we're don't know what his experience with play is. He still seems to be learning how to play with other dogs, at least that's what I think. So I give him his space (as much as I can being he's always on a leash) and I run besides him when he plays with the dogs but when he looks scared and seems to be feeling traped, we stop the play. I let him play with all types of dogs as long they all play nice and I don't allow that dominance behavior.
I found an indoor dog park like setting. They have 2 Rough & Tumble nights and 1 Gentle & Mild night. (evenings - 1 hour each) We took Daisy to the latter on Tuesday. She got along great with 3 young (5-7 mos) Whippets and 2 (1 yr) Beagle/Lab type dogs. It was a good experience for Daisy, me and son. Thursday, we took both Daisy & Duke to a Rough & Tumble. Also a good experience. The dogs were all mixes, but they were all young large sizes - playful in excess for Daisy's size. I ended up holding her 1/2 the time. Duke is not very socialized. The indoor park allowed Duke off-leash, thus less aggressive. He is not friendly at all on-leash. We need to go more often, expecially with Duke. The dogs there were regulars and knew instantly the new dog on the block needed a greeting. Duke was overwhelmed. He did bear teeth a few times. They supplied squirt bottles and a broom in case of a fight. I was nervous and totally expected to go home early. But, it's there for "socializing" and the dogs parents were OK with the way it went.
Curious - has anyone heard of an indoor park for dogs? The place is called Dunk-N-Dogs. A self-serve grooming facility that you bath your dogs and all supplies provided (stand-up tubs, dryers, etc.). The rear end (indoor park) of the facility is used daily as a Doggy Day Care.
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Cute idea, and cute name. Do they have a website?
They used to have an indoor park in Athens for dogs. We went there a couple of times. It was just a big room with lots of toys. It was called Pawtropolis though. They did have a bathing facility also- and of course also had an outside area and were a doggie daycare facility. It was good for those rainy days.
@QuercusCute:
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Dunk N Dogs website:
Never heard of it..no place like that around us. But sounds like a COOL place. My B is like Duke…..on leash is not good
Hey Duke, you are in the Ann Arbor area right? Ever been to Mill Pond Park in Saline? I take Tayda and Lenny there quite a bit when it is nice out… I tried to go on that 80 degree day we had a few weeks ago but it was closed cause it was still muddy... maybe we can meet up there sometime!
@BDawg1005:
They used to have an indoor park in Athens for dogs. We went there a couple of times. It was just a big room with lots of toys. It was called Pawtropolis though. They did have a bathing facility also- and of course also had an outside area and were a doggie daycare facility. It was good for those rainy days.
Same thing at Dunk N Dogs. Big room with toys. Wish I knew about this place long before now (spring). It is apparently more busy during the winter mos. and for bad weather. I do plan on going there for a while more for socializing. Haven't braved the areas dog park. I'll have to go see it and scope out hours when not too busy before I feel comfortable to bring Duke. Daisy's a bit young now anyway.
Hey Duke, you are in the Ann Arbor area right? Ever been to Mill Pond Park in Saline?
Hey there Tayda_Lenny, Thanks! I'm in Livonia. Saline would be about a 50 - 60 minute drive for me. As mentioned above - I'm not real confident to bring Duke to a park yet. He's about 15 mos old now and not real socialized. He needs to calm down some before I feel OK about a dog park. :rolleyes:
I take Hollie to play dates at a K-9 Performance (indoor agilty/obedience/playdate facilty). I wish they had the playdates all the time. It's great for bad weather. So far, they are only doing 1 playdate a month. 
Hollie really enjoys it. They separate the dogs by weight class and I am more comfortable there in a controlled environment than I am at the dog park (which we still go to, off peak times only).
