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May 31, 2014 at 1:30 pm #611511
nativegurlMemberPlease tell me why dog people allow their dogs to run off leash! I see it happening everyday. Do dog owners realize its the law in the City of Seattle? It is a good law that has been put into effect to keep their dog safe, as well as other animals and people. Go to the country to let your large dogs run loose….please be a responsible dog owner!
May 31, 2014 at 2:48 pm #808906
miwsParticipantnativegurl, If you have a cell phone, here’s a good number to program into it:
Seattle Animal Control/Seattle Animal Shelter—-206-386-7387
Now, unfortunately, they have only two (IIRC) Officers citywide, so it may be hard to get them to respond to the incident, but it can’t hurt. There my just be an Officer nearby.
Otherwise, I don’t know what else to tell you. Direct confrontation can have various results; anywhere from the violator giving you a dumb look, like “WTF are you talking about?”, to being totally ignored, to being laughed at, to being told to do something to yourself that’s physically impossible. Maybe…..just Maybe they’ll comply and leash up their dog, because they didn’t know of the Law, (yeah, right), or out of embarrassment, because they were busted. This all just depends on how comfortable you are with any level of confrontation.
We Seattleites are known to be afraid to speak up, and to be passive/aggressive, but jeeze, when we DO speak up, we often get ripped a new one.
Mike
May 31, 2014 at 5:24 pm #808907
shihtzuParticipantA couple reasons from my point of view:
There are A LOT of dogs who need to run and only one dog park in West Seattle. It’s OK, but takes 20-25 minutes to get to for many in WS and is often overrun with professional dog walkers and crowded.
I understand both points of view. I have no problem with off leash dogs somewhere like the Genessee Hill school if no one else is wanting to use it or a secluded beach if the dog is very very good at coming when called. Having a nervous dog and running children though, I wish people wouldn’t have dogs off leash at places like Lincoln Park. Although I would pay for them to create an off leash area there!
May 31, 2014 at 8:43 pm #808908
066XOXParticipant“A secluded beach”? I thought dogs were not allowed on beaches, on/or off leash.
May 31, 2014 at 8:56 pm #808909
JeannieParticipantYou’re right, 066XOX, they’re not allowed on beaches, on/or off leash, but try telling the entitled idiots in Lincoln Park (who know better but don’t care). I DO call Animal Control – maybe enough calls will yield results.
May 31, 2014 at 9:53 pm #808910
JanSParticipantand the “no dogs on the beach” thing is for the health and safety of others. Kids play there, people walk there barefooted sometimes. No one wants to deal with dog pee, dog poop (and if they are letting their dog run free on the beach, they probably don’t care about cleaning up after them). And then there’s the matter of things washing into the water…it’s not very environmentally safe, now, is it?
I do have a problem with off leash in neighborhoods, and playgrounds, and Hiawatha, and Genesee,and parts of WSHS, etc. If someone is contemplating getting a dog, they also need to think about what kind of dog, whether they can handle a big dog (do you have a yard where your dog can exercise?, etc., or do you live in an apartment?, etc)). Responsibility. It’s a good thing. I have encountered people on my street who walk with leash in hand, while their dog is off leash. It’s a busy street, lots of traffic, a fair amount of people walking. What…they’re special? The rules don’t apply because they have a big dog, and the dog needs to run? Get in your car..it only takes a few minutes to get to the off leash park…and stop making excuses for yourself. Twenty to twentyfive minutes to get there? I can drive to Univ. Hospital or Ballard or Mercer Island , and many other places in 20-25 minutes. Westcrest? No…it shouldn’t take that long from anywhere in WS…and I live in Admiral…
May 31, 2014 at 11:09 pm #808911
anonymeParticipantIf you don’t want to go to a dog park, and can’t be bothered to walk your dog and give it plenty of exercise, maybe a dog is not the right companion animal for you. Laws exist for a reason, and it is not up to the lazy or entitled to decide if, and, or when they should be obeyed.
June 1, 2014 at 6:05 am #808912
No_moo_for_youMemberYeah, just go to Westcrest. Make sure you roll up the windows and lock the doors of your car – may want to keep the glovebox and other compartments empty & wide open though, for any browsing prowlers. Oh, and try to navigate away from the dogs whose owners are nowhere to be found or couldn’t give less of a crap that your dog is being harassed by theirs. Fun times!
June 1, 2014 at 8:04 pm #808913
JeannieParticipantFenced yards work very nicely. And if your dog needs to run farther and/or you live in an apartment, put the dog on a leash and run with your dog, or just walk briskly. If you are unable to walk briskly, hire someone to walk/run with your dog. If you can’t hire someone, get a dog that doesn’t have a need to run. All options are preferable to getting sued or worse because your dog attacked a person or another dog.
June 1, 2014 at 8:09 pm #808914
JanSParticipantNo-moo…that’s still not an excuse to allow your dog to go leash free in city environs, or even in wooded areas like, say, Fairmount Road, or Schmitz Park. Is West Crest ideal? Probably not (I don’t own a dog – I think it would be cruel to keep one in an apartment). So go find another one. Make your pet, ostensibly a beloved family member, a priority, and seek out a place to give it the exercise it needs.
June 1, 2014 at 8:24 pm #808915
No_moo_for_youMemberI do, thank you very much. I have a dog walker and a fenced yard. I just wanted to point out why WestCrest isn’t exactly a draw for some people.
Ciao!
June 1, 2014 at 9:29 pm #808916
melissaParticipantThanks for pointing that out, no_moo_for_you. The whole “it’s all one way or the other” folks just tire me out.
June 1, 2014 at 11:15 pm #808917
JanSParticipantno_moo….I have never been to Westcrest, so have no idea the size of it. A shame they can’t sort of divide it into areas, like they do for small dogs,or shy dogs, or however they do it. One area for dog walkers, one for individual dogs. The poop part I don’t get. People need to pick it up, period. There is no “other” on that one.. @ Melissa…all I’m saying is…it’s illegal to let your dog go off leash in public, in parks, on the beach, on the street, at Hiawatha, ad nauseum. Period. No one is more special than any other, elsewise everyone do it, and there’s mayhem. I listened to a very loud argument outside my apartment yesterday between an owner who leashed and one who did not – public street, busy street, pedestrians. A lot of screaming “f” words, and threats, and I suppose the unleashed dog was being a bit aggressive. That dog’s owner was the loudest. And that’s my point…she thought she was special and didn’t have to abide, period. Sorry we tire you out :(
June 2, 2014 at 12:04 am #808918
miwsParticipantJune 2, 2014 at 2:55 am #808919
addParticipantI have never had a problem at WestCrest Park, and I bring my large dog there 2-3 times a week, at all different times (sometimes when the dog-walking professionals are there with large groups and sometimes not). I actually love that place, it’s a great place for a nice walk for the humans as well, with a 1/2-mile loop trail and trails in the wooded areas (which are supposed to be off-leash but that is rarely the case).
As far as the parking lot prowling possibility, sadly that is true in any park (or any parking lot for that matter).
June 2, 2014 at 4:42 am #808920
JanSParticipantadd..what you said about the parking lot is true…again, responsibility. If you value it at all, you will not leave it in your car – when parked ANYWHERE! It’s common sense ! Thanks for your input.
June 2, 2014 at 5:06 am #808921
JeannieParticipantMike, you’re right. Per the Seattle.gov website re Westcrest: A special, separated area for small and shy dogs is located on the southwest side of the main off-leash area.
June 2, 2014 at 5:18 am #808922
066XOXParticipantIs it legal to let your dog run off-leash on a private beach (assuming you had the property owner’s permission)?
June 2, 2014 at 5:26 am #808923
JanSParticipant066….I don’t know what the law is, and didn’t find it when I just googled…but consider…how do you keep your dog on just that piece of private property, and not go on the next person’s private beach? It’s still about responsibility and control. Given circumstances, any dog can be reactive at any given time. So, unless there’s a fence around that private beach…well…good luck. Hope someone comes up with the correct info on that for you :)
June 2, 2014 at 6:16 am #808924
ahmomParticipantIs me kwa mooks an off leash park? Based on the number of off leash dogs there today, it must be!?!?
June 2, 2014 at 2:41 pm #808925
miwsParticipantI have heard that it’s okay to have your dog unleashed, on your private beach.
But, it was just anecdotal info, perhaps even here on the WSB Forums, and perhaps even from a dog/private beach owner.
In any case, Jan has very valid points in Post 19.
ahmom, Nope. Westcrest is the only one in West Seattle.
But yeah, from what I’ve read here over the years, one would think that there were several Off Leashes here in WS; Me Kwa Mooks, Lincoln, Schmitz, Hiawatha, Genesee Elementary Playfield, Fairmount Park Playfield, Hamilton Viewpoint……
Mike
June 2, 2014 at 5:04 pm #808926
JTBParticipantInteresting that we’re having a discussion about dogs being off leash while the article about the sentencing of the hit-run attack driver notes the incident began when her off leash dog bothered two school kids.
June 2, 2014 at 9:47 pm #808927
anonymeParticipantJune 3, 2014 at 2:29 pm #808928
JoBParticipantyes, they can
June 3, 2014 at 5:17 pm #808929
nativegurlMemberThank you for the ideas and input. However, somehow the repeat dog owners need to be remind of these facts…I’m sure a lot of them know these ideas, but refuse to follow the rules [especially when they see another dog owner having their dog off leash)…”if they can do it, I can do it” mentality.
Also, miws, Seattle Animal Control can’t do anything (unless someone is bitten by a dog, etc. serious infractions)- quite frankly, the control officers are probably dog lovers too. They explain that an off leash dog as nothing to complain about…
How about Animal Control putting up posters in pet shops, alerting neighborhood watches, etc? Its going to take a community to get the rules taken seriously.
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