Bringing your dog to the dog park can be an incredible adventure that both you and your dog will love! But this will only be the case if your dog has a fun and safe experience at the park. We all want our furry friends to have the most fun possible but there are a few things to keep in mind to make sure your dog is safe and has an enjoyable time at the dog park.
Tips For The Dog Park
If you are thinking about taking your dog to the dog park it is important that you are prepared to make sure your dog and other dogs have a safe and enjoyable time. You want to make sure your dog is prepared and set up for a fun adventure to the park!
Below are a few tips that you should keep in mind when taking your dog to the dog park.
Wait Until Your Dog Is Old Enough
It is important that you wait until your puppy is old enough before going to public dog parks. Your puppy should have all of its vaccines in order to stay protected from playing and interacting with other dogs. Typically this will be around the 18 week old mark but this can vary based on the health and vaccine schedule of your puppy.
Playing with foreign dogs can be dangerous if your puppy doesn't have all of its vaccines. This could lead to sickness if your puppy doesn't have the vaccines required to fight off disease and keep them safe. For this reason, you should always wait until your dog is fully vaccinated or they are caught up on their vaccines before going to the dog park.
Make Sure Your Dog Is Healthy
A dog park isn't a good place if your dog is sick or injured. You don't want to take a compromised dog into a situation where there will be many other dogs running around because this could worsen your dog's health or ailments. It is always recommended to not bring your dog to a dog park if they aren't healthy in order to protect them as well as all of the other dogs at the dog park. You should always think about the worse case scenario in order to keep your dog safe.
Go For A Practice Run First
If you are nervous about taking your dog to the dog park for the first time then you should think about doing a practice run first! A practice run could be taking your dog to the dog park at a point in time where you know it will be quiet. This could be during the work week and avoiding the weekends to make sure the park is as a quiet as possible. You could also invite a few friends with dogs over to a fenced-in backyard to try to replicate this situation in a safer environment.
If you think your dog will struggle with unknowns and levels of energy within a dog park you should start slowly.
Monitor Your Dog's Reaction
When you take your dog to the dog park for the first time it is important to monitor their behavior and their reaction. It is natural for your dog to be curious about the new adventure and they might even be a little nervous. This is normal but you must make sure that this doesn't progress into your dog being fearful of the park.
It is common for the dogs at a dog park to all run towards and crowd around the new dog. If this is something that will cause your dog fear or anxiety then it could lead to a dangerous situation. You should monitor your dog's reaction as well as their body language to make sure they don't feel cornered or in danger. Dogs that are fearful or protective over their family are more likely to bite or act sporadically.
Do's and Don't For The Dog Park
When you go to the dog park there are some rules and unspoken rules that you should be aware of. These tips will help your dog have an enjoyable time but also keep them and all the other dogs safe.
Stay Off Your Phone And Keep An Eye On Your Dog
When you bring your dog to the dog park it is important that you always keep an eye on them. Just because they are at the dog park, you should still be there to monitor, assist, and correct any unwanted behavior that your dog performs or activities that could negatively impact your dog. Unfortunately, many dog parents will let their dogs loose in the dog park and won't keep an eye on them which can lead to dangerous play or activities that negatively impact the experience for other dog parents.
Dog parks should be a fun and safe adventure for everyone so you should always keep an eye on your dog in order to be respectful to everyone else.
Clean Up After Your Dog
Dog parks are typically public spaces that are paid for by local governments or organizations so it is important that you always clean up after yourself as well as after your dog. You should be respectful to others, the locals, as well as the environment. Leaving trash or litter can be dangerous for the dogs that attend the park but will also negatively impact the environment.
It is important that you pick up your dog's waste and poop so other dogs don't eat it or others don't step in it. Cleaning up after your dog is a respectful thing to do to those around you but will also keep your dog and other dogs safe.
Be Mindful With Toys or Dog Treats
Toys can be incredibly popular at dog parks which can make the experience even more fun for your dog but it is important to make sure toys and treats are safely used at parks. There are some dogs who will be incredibly protective of toys when interacting with other dogs. This can potentially cause an unsafe situation based on the temperaments and behavior of the dogs at the dog park. If you believe your dog will struggle with sharing toys then it might be better to avoid bringing toys to the dog park.
The same concept occurs when you bring dog treats into a dog park. Treats and food can cause some dogs to be aggressive or protective if the treats are distributed in an unsafe manner. You should make sure your dogs as well as other dogs and humans at the dog park are in a safe situation.
