By Luke Voogt
Dog-lovers have urged council to protect off-leash areas as City Hall prepares its latest canine policies.
The call comes as council considers areas where it could prohibit dogs, following 666 reports of dog-related incidents in the past 12 months.
Fifty-five incidents involved people while 10 were serious, according to council statistics.
But Leopold dog trainer Sophie Noss said shutting down troubled off-leash areas should be a last resort.
“Council should be promoting responsible ownership rather than restricting access because a few people aren’t doing the right thing.”
The onus was on owners to understand their dog’s behaviour, Ms Noss said.
“‘My dog is friendly’ is the worst phrase in the history of pet ownership,“ she said.
“Unless you are willing to bet $1000 that your dog will come back when off leash if you call, your dog is not under effective control.”
Council should instead better educate owners, Ms Noss said.
She cited an example as City of Charles Sturt erecting signage detailing dog postures and body language around off-leash parks in Adelaide.
“I believe that (Geelong’s council) is working on better signage.“
Fellow Leopold resident and founder of Geelong Dog Social Group Kyrelee Dine described the fenced off-leash areas like Stead Park as fantastic.
“But as great as they are, once (members) go out of the realm of my dog group (I) can’t control who (their) dogs are socialising with,” she said.
Ms Dine, who used to live in Corio, said the park could be a “free-for-all” which exposed dogs to aggressive or un-vaccinated canine counterparts.
She called for council to make vaccination for viruses such as kennel cough a compulsory part of dog registration.
Geelong Dog Obedience Club secretary Christine Jagtenberg had mixed feelings about off-leash dog areas.
“The off-lead parks are great for dogs to stretch out and socialise,” she said.
But a lot of her home visits had been for dogs that had traumatic experiences at parks, she said.
“It might be worth having fenced-off areas for larger dogs to play … so smaller dogs don’t feel intimidated by larger dogs.”
But irresponsible owners were the problem, not the parks, she added.
Council this week opened public consultation for its Dogs in Public Places Policy and Dog Park Strategy.
The feedback would shape decisions on areas where council might prohibit dogs to protect people or the environment, City Hall’s Linda Quinn said.
Council would also examine where people walk their dogs, current controls and if there was a need for more fenced dog parks, she said.
“We want to hear from people with dogs and people without as it is important that these spaces are safe and appealing for everyone to enjoy.”
