People who refuse to leash their dogs in Maplewood/S.O. parks archived

read the comments for the first 2 and a half pages, then skipped to this page (just dont have hours to read all the posts) so - my comments are mainly from much earlier posts. i am a dog lover, i currently dont have a dog, but did in the city. i wish there were more places that dogs could run off the leash other than the new dog park in the reservation, and i really dont like the comments about it being paid by "taxpayers". i know it is, but the poster who calls the dog run the taxpayer dog run sounds like he is angry about this. it should be. i see many tennis courts in parks that were paid for by our taxes, and i dont play tennis. there are also many playgrounds, and not everyone who lives here plays tennis, or baseball or basketball (thoses areas also paid for by taxes) dog owners pay taxes too, and i would consider playing with your dog outside as much as a recreation as playing tennis. i understand people are scared of dogs, and people should leash their dogs in crowded areas or if asked to. i know there is a law, but i would bet many of the people making some of the dog hysterical posts that i have read have parked more than 2 hours in the 2 hour parking, or where there are no parking signs. actually there is a no parking sign in front of my house, and there are always cars parked there (which makes it difficult to see traffic when leaving my driveway) basically im saying laws are for reasons, but many are often broken, and common sense can be applied for enforsing all of them. i had a dog in nyc that was often off leash. she never even snarled at anyone, even when i drunk man grabbed her collar and pulled the skin on her face. no, not all dogs were as gentle as mine was, and some are unpredictable, but no more unpredictable than kids. i have 2 kids, and they have been bitten by other kids, and pushed, and i am wouldnt be surprised if there are more children hurt by other kids than dogs. i wouldnt be surprised if there were more animals hurt and tortured by kids than kids hurt by animals. i probably sound crazy, i do tend to get emotional when i hear people so angry about dogs off leash. while owing a dog in nyc, i would get crazy people screaming at me from far away as my dog would be sitting in the grass. i think those people are just control freaks. haing the off leash hours in the am allowed the dogs to socialize with the other dogs and their owners. this made them less likely to be violent to other people and other dog. when i moved into town my dog was 15 years old and could barely walk. i used to bring her into orchard park early in the morning with my baby. id push my baby on the swing. more than once, someone would come in and ask my to leash her. i always did, but i would first ask the person if it was okay if i didnt and explain to them i wanted to push my baby on the swing, and my dog couldnt even get up from her lying down position without help. i did have one nasty comment and a scolding by someone. my point? i mentioned earlier that common sense should sometimes come into play with enforcing laws. my dog couldnt even stand up without my help, and this woman was scolding me like i was a child. my other point -many earlier posts made it sound like anyone with their dog off the leash are horrible, inconsiderate, a-holes. i think some dog owners are, but also many hysterical dog haters are too. dogs and children go together, the parents that totally freak when dogs get within 10 feet of their children while on leash dont need to be crazy and rude to the dog owners (and ive seen that too, but only in NYC) the parents who freak out about dogs and their children are teaching their kids to be afraid of and/or not like dogs. i think that is a shame. good relationships with animals teaches people to be humane. the earlier poster who was bitten by the neighbors dog should have to dog put to sleep. it is not normal or natural for a cared for and loved family pet to be vicious. something or someone made it vicious, and it will probably always be that way, and for safety reasons it should be put down. sorry for all my ranting and raving - i just wanted to put in my passionate 2 cents after reading what sounded like so many posts of people who hated dogs and or posts that made it sound like most dogs are vicious (most are not)

My son finally had a break through, which was wonderful. We went to visit friends who have a dog, and son didn't have a choice but to get comfortable. We first walked in and he was terrified, in tears. By the end of the day he was playing catch with the dog, and by the time we left he gave the dog a huge hug good-bye.

Scarlet...GREAT news!!!

Great to hear, Scarlet! If you ever want my mushes to help keep up the progress please let me know. Every kid I know loves them. They're the best. :bigsmile:

Thanks wallflower! I am thinking he is all better. We were at a party this weekend with a huge german shepard. The shepard walked over to him, basically kissed him son, just turned and smiled!

After reading this thread (in all it's enormous glory), for the first time tonight, I was wondering what's going on with osky and her neighbor's dog and if she's completely recovered from her dog bite.

Osky, if you're still following, hope you're ok.