TCDOG Agenda in the News

Article published in The Ithaca Times February 15, 2006

Dog Park Needs More Guarantees

Attention, dog owners: before you begin reading this, take a deep breath, control your eyeball rolling and put yourself on the other side of the fence for a moment.

The Ithaca Times' staff is filled with dog lovers. We own them, we buy them presents and we walk them. What we don't feel the need to do is break the law, nor fight to have it changed to suit only a few. Do dogs love to run off-leash? Well, we assume so, but none of us actually speak "dog" so we can't be sure. The more important questions? Can you, the owner, guarantee control of Fido when he's off-leash? Can you assure us that if Spike encountered a scared child when you were still 10 yards behind he wouldn't bite her? What about the jogger your pooch decides is just no good? Will she bite him?

At last week's meeting of the Community and Neighborhood Services Committee for Common Council, Tompkins County (TC) Dog representative Ken Zeserson said the answers to the above questions are impossible to give. He said there was no way safety could be promised to every person who enters the dog park and that there is no way to assure that even the best-trained dog could be controlled in specific circumstances.

If you can't put your own life on the answers to these safety questions, you shouldn't be asking others to risk theirs. After all, that is what the legalization of (and non-legal participation in) an off-leash dog park does. A change here would up a whole new can of puppy chow. What about clean-up? TC Dog representatives say they do an excellent job at it, but the new Waterfront Trail near Cass Park is a prime example of what happens when dog owners aren't diligent about cleaning up.

While only one person spoke out against the idea at last week's committee meeting, there are others who find it too difficult to stand up to those in favor of this change. The eye rolls, snickers and snorting that resulted from the lone dissenter's comments should be explanation enough. As a newspaper that has previously spoken out against an off-leash dog park, we have first-hand familiarity with how vicious the bite of dog owners can be. And so it makes it difficult - with an angry dog owner growling at you - to believe that these people can keep their animals under control.

For every dog lover out there, there is at least one person who either doesn't love dogs, who is afraid of them or is allergic to them. Shouldn't we be considering the comfort of all and not just a few "squeaky wheels"? Off-leash in a public park is not the answer. An alternative needs to be considered and the TC Dog members need to be willing to accept a little rather than expecting two entire city-owned pieces of property to be dedicated to their dog walking.

©Ithaca Times 2006

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Reader Comments

Added: Saturday February 18, 2006 at 04:17 PM EST

Eye rolls and snorts

I am not a dog owner or bird watcher. I was at the meeting only to hear the discussion of taxi rates as I am thinking of opening a taxi business in Ithaca.

I thought that Kevin Zesersen's answer about guarantees was honest and perfectly acceptable. No one can guarantee anything about anybody else's behavior, much less a dog's. That does not mean the risk is great. Whatever the risk, these dog people are citizens and they have rights too. They should not have to beg for a place to exercise their dogs. Reasonable lawmakers and reasonable journalists should recognize that such needs are legitimate and must be met.

As for rolling eyeballs and snorts: Freedom of speech does not guarantee that everyone will like or respect what they hear. You're not talking about molotov cocktails, or shouted obscenities or anything serious. You're talking about a few reflexive responses to the remarks of a guy who is making their cherished pets out to be dangerous hooligans. Building your entire editorial response to an issue around your perception of a few snorts or eye-rolls guarantees that you will get snorts and eye-rolls from your readers.

Samuel Osterhaven, Ithaca, NY

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Added: Wednesday February 15, 2006 at 03:41 PM EST
Put a fence around your dog park Put a fence around your dog park, post rules (for example see www.fortworthdogpark.org/parkinfo.htm#rules) and it should be safe enough. I know ya'll have lots of snow, so put the dog park on top of a hill. Heck, ya'll got one of them Ivy League colleges in your neighborhood so ya'll should be smart enough to figure out how to have a safe, fenced, off-leash dog park like over 700 other communities in the U.S.. It will bring in sales tax revenues from out of town visitors, can result in reduced crime in already existing parks, and it will be one of the most used parks in your community. After all, a dog park is as much for the citizen/taxpayer/dog owner as it is for the dog. Ithaca can have a great dog park! Good luck.

Jason Smith, Fort Worth, Texas

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Dog parks are City treasures.

Fort Woof, the dog park built in Fort Worth, Texas, has resulted in a big reduction in crime in an already existing regional park. Fort Woof brings revenues from sales tax from out-of-city vistors. It is safe and kept clean by its users. Fort Woof is one of the most used parks in a county of 1.5 million population. After all, its a park for dog owners as much as it is for dogs.

Jason Smith, Fort Worth, Texas