[moondog]

Originally Posted by MikeT66

But to just tell someone it is a bad thing when they are looking for advice on whether it is a good thing to take your dog to a dog park to me is wrong.

And to say it's a good thing when there is clear evidence to the contrary is.....good advice?

Originally Posted by MikeT66

How can you say it is a bad thing if you have never done it? You are just offering an opinion without any first hand experience doing it from what I have read from alot of the posts.

I don't mind that you disagree for disagreement's sake in the least. I do mind, however, when you state things as fact that, in fact, are not. The search function here is very useful:

Originally Posted by moondog

7.5. 2001 - At the off-leash dog park, people have a tendency to gather in the center to chat, and don't really supervise their dogs, which become this huge mass of activity, which bothers me, so I avoid that area and walk the perimeter. One day a fight broke out in the center, with more and more dogs joining in. Luna took off for the festivities in a full run and I yelled "Luna, Come!!" Well, this is the best darn dog I've ever had!!! She turned right around and came to me! I was floored (and grateful).

Originally Posted by moondog

4.9.2002 - I'm not a big fan of dog parks, either. I've taken Luna a couple dozen times and nine times out of ten she had a really good time. A couple times she became the object of some really ugly bullying and that was a couple times too many for me. I'm not willing to risk the good attitude she has with other dogs just because I want her to have a good time. We've since found other dogs that she has a great time with and for us that's the best situation. Nothing gets out of control and we're all on the same page as far as how we expect the dogs to behave with each other.

Originally Posted by moondog

10.15.2004 - The last time I took my dog to a dog park was about 5 years ago (she's 9-1/2). Two rather LARGE malamute/husky types moved in and cornered her about 30 seconds after we entered, right after I took her leash off. All she wanted to do was get to me...they kept her cornered, and were simply being bullies, moving in and putting more pressure on her with any move she made to try to escape. I was instantly concerned they might push her to the point where she'd make a decision to fight her way out of the corner, so I moved in and gave her an escape route, which she gladly took. I have no idea who the owners were - either they didn't notice or didn't care. Either way, I was not about to subject my dog to a situation like that ever again. We left, and never looked back. No more dog parks, no more group play. I have selected her playmates from that day forward and she only plays with one dog at a time, and a dog *I* know is a good playmate.

Originally Posted by moondog

10.9.2005 -
Originally Posted by momasboy
That's why I thought the dog park was such a great idea.
In theory, they are. The problem is, as has been said so many times, that you simply do not know what kinds of dogs you will encounter there. Maybe you will find decent playmates, and maybe you will find a dog that would like a piece of yours for lunch (which DOES happen, and then all the other dogs love to jump in and "help"). The dynamic changes with the dogs that are present at any given time, and Disneyland can turn into Hell on Earth in the blink of an eye.

Originally Posted by moondog

1.21.2007 - What people don't seem to "get" is that, while dogs among a known group "can" peacefully coexist (as they do in our homes most of the time), the group at a dog park is forever changing. To dogs, who possess an intrinsic need to know where they stand in a group, this means they are put in a situation where they are forever having to reestablish rank. That is a stressful activity for all dogs, and not all dogs can handle it well, if at all. The "disney" concept of dog parks is in the minds of people.....dogs have a much different view of it.....and much of it is not fun for them at all, not to mention potentially dangerous.

There's a taste of my lack of "experience" for you.