Letter of the Week
It was sad to see in The Source last week that a group of Ultimate Frisbee enthusiasts might lose their traditional playing field in Sawyer Park to dogs.
At one time, the issue of off-leash dog parks did not exist. When I was young my family had a pit bull, a Scottish terrier, and a lab-German shepherd mix, and we never felt the need for an off-leash dog park. We leashed them up and walked or jogged them around the neighborhood. All of these dogs were happy, and so were we.
Dog owners today, on the other hand, demand large spaces for their pets to roam free.
Why?
People today exercise little or choose contrived techniques to burn calories. Walking has basically become obsolete, and thus the idea of walking one’s dog is in decline. Furthermore, people today are super-stressed for time. The problem thus posed is to exercise a dog with as little effort and in as little time as possible. Enter the off-leash dog park and the “Chuck It!,” a plastic device for hurling tennis balls; together, they make it possible to tire a dog quickly, while sipping a latte.
All of this would be okay, except for two problems. First, as The Source article indicated, off-leash dog enthusiasts crowd people off of playing fields. Second, the defecatory doings of an off-leash dog are difficult to detect, which trashes the field for subsequent users. Because of these constraints, dog owners should be expected to choose responsibly while selecting a dog. If you have a small yard, do not like to exercise (at least with a dog), and/or do not have time for walks, then don’t buy an active breed.
There are many types of dog to choose from. Buying one appropriate for your lifestyle will make it easier on everyone, including yourself. Some dog owners might protest that their dog simply likes to roam free. That’s fine, but in a civilized society a dog’s likes are subordinate to a human’s when user conflicts occur. Moreover, some breeds like to roam free much more than others. If you have chosen a “roamer,” then be prepared to roam yourself – either around town with your dog on a leash, or to a remote location where open space is not an issue.
Matt Orr, Bend
This article appears in May 15-21, 2008.
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I can see no-leash parks in large cities. Portland has a couple good ones. I cannot see them in Bend. There is plenty of BLM land nearby dog lovers can take their pups to to romp.
The needs for our services evolve as the community does the same. Taking rover out to BLM land when the option of a closer venue that requires less travel to get there seems like a no-brainer. The discussion should be: in a time of limited resources–parks and park development dollars–is there greater demand from the Ultimate Frisbee crowd or the dog crowd? If the uses don’t mix, the sector with the greatest demand takes precedence.
Well said Stephen, but I think the equation that we are all working with on this issue is not Ultimate Frisbee vs. Dog Owners. Boy would that be one sided, but rather field sport users vs. Dog owners not close to public lands or other dog parks. Also, go ahead and throw in the other possible sites and see how the numbers crunch out.
I agree–the only off leash area is on the far East Side. Certainly some accommodation can be made somewhere for Rover. Perhaps Sawyer is the best possible site–perhaps not. Generating a few thousand scofflaws daily is not the way to handle it.
Look, people don’t exercise anyway. Let the dogs have their playroom. Just because a couple of people in bend are actually “exercisers” doesn’t mean the rest of us have to run with our dogs.