Update: Off-leash dogs in our parks

[Jeannie]

Following the death of a seal this summer, almost certainly the result of an attack by an off-leash dog, I wrote to several officials. I am also in contact with the person from Animal Control who deals with such matters. In the meantime, Susan Golub of the Parks Department was kind enough to respond to my email, and she also granted me permission to share her email on the West Seattle Blog. I really appreciate what she wrote:
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“Seattle Parks and Recreation (SPR) shares your sadness and anger about the death of a seal at Constellation Park in West Seattle which as you note appears to have occurred as the result of an attack by a dog. Dogs are not allowed on Seattle beaches, much less off-leash, as must have been the case in this attack.

You are correct that Animal Control cannot be everywhere; however, as a result of the passage of the Seattle Park District, there is now a Park District-funded Animal Control team patrolling solely in parks. This team has added significantly to the enforcement of off-leash violations: from April through June of this year 271 violations were issued in parks, five times as many as were issued for all of 2015.

Hoping to avoid another attack on a defenseless seal, Seattle Parks and Recreation has contact Seal Sitters, the non-profit organization dedicated to protecting seals on our beaches. (http://sealsitters.org/) We hope to develop a protocol with Seal Sitters for when there is a vulnerable seal on the beach and volunteers are not available to keep people and dogs away. Our goal would be to alert the Park District-funded Animal Control team when this situation arises, so that they can, if possible, patrol the beach. While we cannot guarantee the Animal Control Officers will be nearby or on duty (the team works a 40-hour week, fluctuating in times and days to provide varied times of patrol), we will strive to coordinate with Animal Control and Seal Sitters to prevent another attack.

Also, you may be interested to know that SPR is developing a plan for the improvement of the City’s 14 off-leash areas. Information about the plan can be found here: http://www.seattle.gov/parks/about-us/policies-and-plans/people-dogs-and-parks-strategic-plan
The Board of Park Commissioners is holding a public hearing on the plan on September 22 at 6:30 in the Park Board Room at 100 Dexter Avenue N. SPR hopes that improvements to the existing off-leash areas will result in their increased use and fewer illegal off-leash dogs in parks and on beaches.

Thank you for alerting Seattle Parks and Recreation to this sad occurrence.

Susan

Susan Golub
Manager, Policy Unit
Seattle Parks and Recreation”

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[miws]

Thanks for sharing this, Jeannie…

Mike

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[WSB]

The draft offleash plan has been out for more than two months now and I’m still surprised it hasn’t gotten much attention citywide. We were first to report it, as we’d covered several discussions at community meetings before it finally came out and had been watching for it … they didn’t even issue a news release until it had been out for weeks. So anyone with an interest in the topic should prepare to speak up sooner rather than later! – TR

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[Jeannie]

Thanks, Miws and West Seattle Blog! Of course we can count on the Blog for the best coverage. I plan to call Animal Control’s head of enforcement when he returns from vacation later this week. He was quite responsive when I spoke with him a few years ago. But part of the problem, along with obnoxious dog owners (the owners, not the dogs!) who flout the law, is lack of staffing for Animal Control. As far as I can determine, it’s up to City Council to allocate more funds for hiring and training. Plus, the signage in Lincoln Park, for instance, is pretty pathetic and easy to miss/ignore.
I’ll provide an update here once I’ve spoken with Animal Control. In the meantime, if you see an off-leash dog in our parks and especially on the beaches, please call Animal Control or contact Parks and Recreation. As I’ve said before, I love dogs – it isn’t their fault. It’s just the irresponsible owners, who, thankfully, are in the minority, who cause all the problems. In fact, these owners can be quite rude and aggressive.

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[JoB]

and that’s the bottom line..
it’s the owners who are the real problem

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[waynster]

who let the dogs out…..?

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[ecojill]

I’m not defending anyone, but wondering how you all came to the conclusion that it was an off leash dog that killed the seal? Did anyone see this or see the seal before it was killed? And if so, was Seal Sitters alerted or the seal protected? Is there anything else that could have killed the seal on land (like a raccoon?) or could the seal have been attacked in the Sound? Just questioning the assumptions.

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[miws]

ecojill, This was discussed in this WSB article from last month.

More details are in this Blubberblog article linked in the WSB article.

Mike

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[ecojill]

Thanks Mike – that article and the investigation clarifies that it was a dog most likely. It’s interesting from a language perspective that people don’t say a dog, but an off-leash dog. Makes it sound like the owner is purposefully letting their dog attack a seal – could be a lost dog or a backyard escapee or even an on-leash dog.

I’ve been watching the rhetoric between dog owners and those who are down on dog owners. Wish we had a bit more balance here to serve everyone and less vitriol. With more dogs than kids in Seattle, we could dedicate more space to dogs and alleviate some of the problem.

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[JoB]

ecojill..
i am one of those people who complain loudly about off leash dogs… and i am a dog owner.

As a dog owner i consider it my responsibility to pick up my dog’s poo and to make sure that they have safe and legal places to be off leash.. behind secure fences.

I have shiba inus (only one now) who are notorious escape artists.. so yes.. there have been rare occasions when my dogs escaped from my yard… but they were rare and the dogs were quickly recovered because i don’t leave them in a yard outside when i am not home.

that’s what a responsible dog owner does.

it is unthinkable that a dog owner would let their leashed dog attack a seal .. though i have seen dog owners sic their dogs on other dogs and i have watched dog owners allow their dogs to chase birds while on a retractable leash.. so who knows..

I don’t assume that a dog owner stood by and watched their dog attack the seal… but i do think the distinction that the dog was off leash is accurate.

If the dog was not leashed it is off leash… and that makes it some person’s responsibility.

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[Jeannie]

A few days ago, I spoke with the supervisor at the Seattle Animal Shelter who is in charge of compliance/enforcement. Our conversation was helpful and enlightening, and I appreciate his taking the time to discuss the concerns of so many of us. Here are a few takeaways:

1. Every call you make to the Animal Shelter re an off-leash dog in our parks, they generate a patrol call. So, your call does count! Put this on your speed dial: 206-386-7387. 
2. Responders (who also patrol our parks – and there are only TWO for all our parks!) have to go out in pairs. This is because of safety concerns and to manage multiple violators at the same time.
4. Funding – and allocations of funds – is an issue.
5. Of course, situations like injured animals, cruelty to animals, menacing animals and so on, get higher priority.
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By the way, though the WSB has already posted the info, here’s a reminder that Seattle Parks & Recreation will be holding the “Dogs and Parks” meeting Sept. 22, starting at 6:30 PM, at the Miller Community Center, 330 19th Ave E. If you have the time, I hope you can attend. 

I can’t emphasize enough that most or even all of us who are concerned about off-leash dogs are dog-lovers. Many of us own and cherish our four-legged friends. People who flout the ordinance are, for the most part, not ignorant of the rules. They just feel entitled, and think that they can get away with it.

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[anonyme]

And they can. With only two compliance officers for the entire city, I can’t see officers making a trip to West Seattle very often. But that information is confusing and frustrating; I was under the impression that more officers had been added, specifically for Lincoln Park? Was it all smoke and mirrors?

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[Jeannie]

Anonyme, I am sorry I didn’t respond to your question earlier. I asked the Animal Shelter guy, ”
So it is indeed only TWO officers for the entire city who handle animal-related problems in our parks?” He said yes.

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[anonyme]

So, we were lied to previously when told that officers would be added and patrols increased in Lincoln Park. Am I the only one who remembers reading this?

I don’t think I’ve ever lived anywhere where there was so little enforcement of law, or so little accountability by public officials.

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