Sunday, February 14, 2010

A Day at the Dog Park

Most city dogs love dog parks. Given the chance, they like to socialize with other canines even more than with us humans. Sure, we feed them, pet them, buy them expensive squeaky toys... but we steadfastly refuse to sniff their nether regions. We also don't like it when they jump on our heads. But at the dog park? No problem! There are always plenty of other dogs that understand the mystique of nether-region-sniffing and don't mind having their heads jumped on. The need for dog parks seems like a no-brainer.

But, surprisingly, there was no such thing before 1979. Sure, there were areas where folks and dogs met up to play, but they weren't official. That means there were no doggie water fountains, rest areas, or double gates. So who do we have to thank for the modern miracle of dog parks? The credit belongs to a little bird called the snowy plover.

In the late 1970s snowy plover numbers were plummeting along America's Pacific coast. One big culprit seemed to be off-leash dogs running amok through their nesting areas. So the dogs and their people moved inland, and started using parks instead of the beach as their playground. Naturally this caused some friction with those that wanted their parks to be dogs-on-leashes only zones. A compromise was reached in 1979 when the Experimental Dog Park was opened in Berkeley. It was the world's first dog park. The concept was so new that many people stopped by to ask what kinds of experiments were being done there!

Since then almost 1,000 dog parks have opened across the U.S. The Experimental Dog Park has been re-christened The Martha Scott Benedict Memorial Dog Park. And the concept has spread around the world. Helsinki seems to have the most, and nicest canine playgrounds per capita. Sadly, the worst one is supposedly right here in Los Angeles. But that's okay. There are plenty to choose from. And our city dog prefers any day at the park to a day spent lounging on the couch.




14 comments:

  1. Interesting - never knew all that, thanks! A looong time ago [egads, 16 yrs.!] I used to take my baby [read: german shepherd husky] to a park in Hollywood because I lived about a block away & I could walk there. I remember it being great for the hiking, view & a neat old ruins. I also met the nicest people there. We stopped going because it got pretty populated & people just weren't cleaning up after their dogs. :( It causes me to wonder if that might be the "worst" you mention! Name witheld due to said possibility, but you probably know it from my details!

    ReplyDelete
  2. It's often funny to hear the story about how certain things came about. :0)

    ReplyDelete
  3. I think dog parks are a great idea!

    I used to walk my parents dog when I visited. I was always afraid he would leave something behind. My Dad said, there were certain houses that did not mind at all and which bushes they wanted the "gifts" left around. So when I walked, that's where I hung out... at the "gift" shrubs!


    Have a great day!


    http://christiecottage.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  4. Haha, that's very funny, Christie! Were those people friends or foes, I wonder?

    Thanks for the comments everyone!

    ReplyDelete
  5. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  6. fascinating! i wish our parks were so dog friendly here in the UK... things are getting stricter and stricter all the time. :( We get fined for even just breathing, let alone letting a dog off it's leash!...sigh... whats the world coming to ay?

    http://moonangelnay.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  7. How funny, who knew that birds gave way for dogs to have their own parks!

    ReplyDelete
  8. my college had those signs!! If only I could post a picture I would show you one all covered in snow! I loved walking the dogs I walked by it and smile.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Very interesting, I didn't know that!

    I live in Manhattan, and the nearby parks and dog runs are essential to keeping my pooch socialized, happy, and fit.

    ReplyDelete
  10. That's really interesting! And that sign is hilarious :)

    My dog loves going to the dog park here in Brisbane, Australia. I wonder if Australian dog parks have snowy plovers on the other side of the world to thank for it, too? Or if it was following the same idea of letting dogs have a play space while protecting the local native species.

    ReplyDelete

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...