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Bindi and the dog park


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Thanks to Freckles' people I decided to try a dog park that actually had dogs in it. It went awesome. Bindi was so excited the minute she got out of the car. We couldn't even see the dog park at that point. How did she know where we were going??? Anyway, I met a really nice lady with a golden retriever on my way in. Her dog was just over a year and full of energy like Bindi. They hit it off great. I started out with Bindi on the leash and we were in an empty part of the park. Once I saw that they were going to play nice I let her off. She met a ton of nice dogs and none ate her, which I was worried about. And!!!! she came to me when I called her. I was so proud. :rolleyes:

 

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This is Luna. She is a bulldog/staffie mix and my new best friend. I had cookies in my pocket and she was attached to me most of the time we were there.

 

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I would have taken Luna home with me if her person had let me. She is an awesome, sweet dog. I HEART Luna.

 

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Waiting for the frisbee. The big black dog wouldn't let anyone else get to the frisbee though. It was really funny.

 

All in all, a great experience. We are definitely going to go back.

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Congrats!! I'm so happy it went so good for you guys. Parks can be great fun if you carful enough. Your such a good girl Bindi :rolleyes: Keep up the good work with her. Your doing great.

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Guest WoobiesMom

That's great! I'll just add that sometimes having treats in your pocket can be a recipe for being pestered and knocked down. We have a couple of big bruiser dogs at our park and they tend to jump and knock over anyone who comes in with food. Unfortunately, the little kid with animal crackers learned the hard way. But I'm so glad Bindi and you had a great time!

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Guest LJS1993

It's great to hear Bindi was having fun and did well. However you know what is even better to hear in my opinion? The fact that she came to you when called and didn't get all wrapped up in the other dogs. Freckles made me proud yesterday when she showed less interest in the dogs and more in my fiance and myself. Granted some of it may be apprehension, but alot of it is obedience to her owners. She came to us whenever she either got too far or was called, something Bindi seems to have done also. Excellent in my opinion.

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We went again tonight and there was a different bunch of dogs. All in all, it went well. Bindi ticked off an old guy with a Irish Setter. They were playing great and running around like crazy and then the Setter started getting tired. Bindi, as usual, didn't recongnize the signals (growling and snapping) so I tried to get her back to me. Meanwhile the old guy got his dog back on the leash and left. I said I was sorry and that she doesn't always read signals and he didn't respond - didn't even look at me. That's ok though - he was crabby. Earlier he was picking up abandoned poo piles and complaining that the people that left them should be lined up a shot. Whatever. I pick them up when I see them and figure it's part of the experience. I know people do there best and sometimes poo gets left behind.

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Wow, if everyone that left poop behind once in a while were shot there would be lots more dogs looking for new owners. I would be one too. Sometimes you just run out of bags and have nothing else to use. What do you do?

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Guest Freckles LaLa Mom
Wow, if everyone that left poop behind once in a while were shot there would be lots more dogs looking for new owners. I would be one too. Sometimes you just run out of bags and have nothing else to use. What do you do?

 

Wow I guess we're spoiled. The shelter provides pooper scoopers. :rolleyes:

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Wow, if everyone that left poop behind once in a while were shot there would be lots more dogs lo Sometimes you just run out of bags and have nothing else to use. What do you do?

 

I am in NO way suggesting you be shot :D or that you're a repeat offender. But the solution is you always bring twice as many bags as you think you'll use. Or you bring 3 more bags than you ever have needed to use in the past. Or you ask someone at the park to use one of their bags. Or you become like me and are a freak about always having bags on you or nearby. :D

 

Again, not saying you are bad about picking up after your dogs, but there are lots of people who just find it more convenient not to "see" their dog pooping or not to have bags on them and just leave the mess for someone else to deal with or walk into. I saw this when I lived in an apartment complex. I see this on walks in my neighborhood and at agility shows. I even see this at my club when people let their dogs out in the yard unsupervised because the dog "went" right before they came, so it must be my imagination that their dog is "going" outside in the middle of one of the agility rings.

 

Not picking up after dogs is a huge reason dogs are forbidden at more and more places. So I understand the crabby old man's frustration, actually :rolleyes:

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Guest WoobiesMom

I'm spoiled too, our park has scoopers and this toilet type thing that you put the poop down and then spray with water, pretty cool. But when the park removed the trash cans because the bugs were becoming unbelievable, the people who normally use bags just stopped picking up. :rolleyes: I tend to pick up at least 5 unclaimed piles everytime I go, just part of the experience.

 

I also want to say that Bindi has the coolest eyes I've ever seen! Are they yellow or what? They seem to glow! Way cool!

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This is a brand new dog park - just fenced in last weekend. There are garbage cans and people have left a bag full of plastic bags at the entrance. There is no reason you should leave poo but I wouldn't be surprised if I miss Bindi doing her thing one day. She is running all over the park and I can't keep up with her. Plus, I like to visit with people and hear about their dogs so I'm not always following her around.

 

I also want to say that Bindi has the coolest eyes I've ever seen! Are they yellow or what? They seem to glow! Way cool!

 

No, they are ice blue. It's hard to get a good picture of them.

 

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This was the day we brought her home. It's the best picture I have of her eyes.

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Guest WoobiesMom

Holy Moly! Those are the brightest eyes I've ever seen! So beautiful! I'm glad you guys worked through your past challenges and she's working out so well! Yay! And glad you found a park, they can be so much fun for our four footed friends!

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I second not taking your eyes off Bindi, even if you are socializing. People will understand if you start turning in circles to keep an eye on your dog while they are talking to you. It's really for Bindi's safety esp since she has not learned the signals to back off other dogs. And I don't really like when people aren't within sprinting distance (50 meters or so) of their dog.

 

I was sitting in the grass resting with my dogs the last time we were at the dog park and Diesel went to say hi to an Aussie, they were sniffing and the next thing I knew they were 'fighting'. I sprinted down the hill I was on yelling 'hey hey hey' to break it up - ended up sliding down as I got close (opps) which probably scared the dogs enough to break it up. Fortunately no blood and the Aussie owner who was walking the pathway was really cool about it, saying it's ok, it's ok. Not sure who started the fight or why - I was watching... but it was quick. I leashed up Diesel and we went home to be on the safe side. Diesel's only gotten into trouble with another dog over a toy, but there was no toy in sight this time. You just never know.

 

Be safe, be diligent.

 

Oh, and on the note of 'mean people' at the dogpark. That's me. If someone's dog is obnoxious for whatever reason and I have to pick up my dog (it's always River) to remove her from the situation, I am NOT a happy camper that the owner did not do the right thing with their dog so I usually just storm away. Better then saying something mean or 'it's ok' which is what I usually say, and it's NOT ok - so I say nothing. It's not my job in life to make people feel less guilty about being idiots. It's just the way I feel about it.

 

ETA: thinking on this a few minutes... if Bindi was at my dog park and my dog told her enough was enough and Bindi didn't respond, I WOULD expect the owner to step in and remove Bindi. Not only does this keep her dog, Bindi, safe, but it helps Bindi learn the limits and the signals via the owner (applying a command everytime you had to do this, like 'all done' 'leave it' would be helpful in Bindi's training). I would probably also shout HEY at Bindi is she kept provoking my dog in hopes to get her owner's attention to the situation. Then I would remove my dogs and leave.... that's right, in a huff. :rolleyes:

 

I personally put up with a lot of things I shouldn't. But when it comes to my kids or my dogs, I'm the passive aggressive.

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Guest LJS1993
ETA: thinking on this a few minutes... if Bindi was at my dog park and my dog told her enough was enough and Bindi didn't respond, I WOULD expect the owner to step in and remove Bindi. Not only does this keep her dog, Bindi, safe, but it helps Bindi learn the limits and the signals via the owner (applying a command everytime you had to do this, like 'all done' 'leave it' would be helpful in Bindi's training). I would probably also shout HEY at Bindi is she kept provoking my dog in hopes to get her owner's attention to the situation. Then I would remove my dogs and leave.... that's right, in a huff. :rolleyes:

 

I personally put up with a lot of things I shouldn't. But when it comes to my kids or my dogs, I'm the passive aggressive.

 

 

Excellent point indeed. I can give you a perfect example when Freckles was being puppy obnoxious with another dog. There is this one dog named "Annie", an older female mutt who is very grouchy and moody. Freckles for some lame reason is absolutely enthralled by this dog. Well the last time I was at the park Freckles was tail wagging, butt shaking, trying to lick Annie's face non-stop. My fiance and I both watch Freckles very closely and noticed Annie was not into it by any means. I slowly walked over and told Freckles, "Freckles NO", then scruffed her and put her on her back after she failed to follow my directions. Freckles struggled then as I looked at her I told her in a calm voice to "relax". In the mean time "Annie" walked off and Freckles did much better after this moment. However, I have to say I also believe that Annie's owner should have also stepped in and remind her mutt that she also has to mind her manners. But the old lady didn't so I took the high road and ended the situation before it even began.

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However, I have to say I also believe that Annie's owner should have also stepped in and remind her mutt that she also has to mind her manners. But the old lady didn't so I took the high road and ended the situation before it even began.

 

What manners do you feel Annie needed to have? She communicated to Freckles that she wanted to be left alone. Did she go beyond growling, snarling or snapping? Did she go after Freckles without reason?

 

Also, just curious... In the photo you posted, are you playing with Freckles, correcting her or what?

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Guest LJS1993
What manners do you feel Annie needed to have? She communicated to Freckles that she wanted to be left alone. Did she go beyond growling, snarling or snapping? Did she go after Freckles without reason?

 

Also, just curious... In the photo you posted, are you playing with Freckles, correcting her or what?

 

 

Well in the photo I was running and basically messing around. And you have a point, but still, for the lady to merely sit there babbling away with her cronies was not correct in my opinion and never will be.

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for the lady to merely sit there babbling away with her cronies was not correct in my opinion and never will be.

 

Hmm. I guess I don't follow what you expected the woman to do, other than intervene which you did. If it was my dog being pestered at a dog park, I suppose I would shoo the other dog away.

 

Keep in mind, I never go to dog parks. I worry too much about other dogs and clueless owners. I'm overprotective in my old age. Fortunately for Quinn, he has a play group of a bunch of BC's and terriers and sometimes labs that he can romp with. The owners are training club members so we all know each other and all the dogs and generally let the dogs sort things out themselves. Though there is one dog I will chase away from Quinn because she likes to make him crawl for absolutely no reason. He stays out of her way and pays her little to no attention. So in my mind, her behavior is just rude. Now this is when I can take a moment from making sure my Lhasa isn't threatening to beat some dog up for his lunch money. :rolleyes:

 

And yes, Freckles does look rabid. I love it when Border Collies look all wild like that.

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Good points on keeping tabs on Bindi. She gets away from my sight, which sounds like a not ok thing. I'll fix that next time we go. But DANG she's fast. This park is a couple of acres and she just runs the entire thing.

 

FWIW: that guy was just plain crabby. I was fairly close to the dogs when his dog told Bindi to back off. I said in a firm voice, Bindi Stop while I was moving towards them. She did but his dog listens better than mine so he was able to get his leash on first. I was still walking around him in circles trying to get Bindi to stay. I don't like making people angry - it's one of my good/bad personality traits. It bothers me that he didn't say anything. I think of it as a courtesy thing. You don't have to say it's ok, just acknowledge that I apologized.

 

So, do people bring their dogs to the dog park just to run? I mean should I expect there will be people that don't want their dogs played with by my dog or any other dog?

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Guest LJS1993
Good points on keeping tabs on Bindi. She gets away from my sight, which sounds like a not ok thing. I'll fix that next time we go. But DANG she's fast. This park is a couple of acres and she just runs the entire thing.

 

FWIW: that guy was just plain crabby. I was fairly close to the dogs when his dog told Bindi to back off. I said in a firm voice, Bindi Stop while I was moving towards them. She did but his dog listens better than mine so he was able to get his leash on first. I was still walking around him in circles trying to get Bindi to stay. I don't like making people angry - it's one of my good/bad personality traits. It bothers me that he didn't say anything. I think of it as a courtesy thing. You don't have to say it's ok, just acknowledge that I apologized.

 

So, do people bring their dogs to the dog park just to run? I mean should I expect there will be people that don't want their dogs played with by my dog or any other dog?

 

 

Maybe the guy was just having a real bad day? Who knows, but at least you made the effort to control Bindi, so for that he cannot fault you. Also, I would think that when you take a dog to a dog park you should expect for it to come into playful contact with others. Yes, sometimes you want to train your dog around others for practice, however he couldn't have been crabby for that reason.

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I have an 8 acre dog park that has extreme elevation differences (plateau down a hill to another plateau) which kinda makes for 2 different parks, but connected. I go to walk the perimeter with my dogs. This is mostly because, 1. I want exercise for myself and not have to have my 3 dogs pulling at the end of a leash. 2. my dogs generally don't play with the dogs there. River will go up to every human looking for a ball or chuckit stick in their hand and beg for fetch if they do.

 

I have seen a dog that literally did laps in the 5 acre section of the dog part the whole time I was there. No clue who his owner was, it wasn't apparent to me, but the dog was fine and some dogs chased him sometimes. Most people play fetch with their dogs, others stand in social groups and the dogs play with each other. But there's always several groups at a time walking the perimeter. Sometimes I stop for a bit and sit, esp if River finds some poor sucker to throw her a ball. Then we go before she gets so tired she can't walk back up the hill to the car (yes, that's happened once, she kept laying down going up the hill, so we had to take a break).

 

I live on 5 acres, so I don't really NEED the dog park. I used it when I first got each dog to work on their recall and distraction obedience things (sit, stay, etc). But mostly I go to get exercise in the company of my dogs and I like to people/dog watch as I do it. I think most people that go live in subdivisions with small yards so they are exercising their dogs.

 

Decide on yours and Bindi's needs before you go. You don't want her to get any bad habits by going either. Letting her run and run is just fine as long as you have her in your sight the whole time. That way you can try to prevent anything wicked that might be coming her way.

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