This morning, while I was out with the kids near the soccer fields, I witnessed an "interaction" if you will, between a home owner and about 4 or 5 dog walkers. The dogs were barking and playing, albeit off-leash after the regulated hours. The home owner had walked out into his driveway, with a baby, and yelled across the street for the dog walkers to quiet their barking dogs. The response? Not what I would have expected, that's for sure.

The homeowner had said he was tired of asking people as he had been doing for the last 2 1/2 years. One dogwalker yelled back " I know you're a cop, and I know you work for _________. I'm going to call them and tell them you won't stop harassing us! I know people that work there that are high up!"

The homeowner yelled back that he was tired of asking, and was going to just call animal control. He further told the dogwalkers the off-leash hours were something like 6am-8am and 8pm-10pm on weekends, and longer on weekdays ... I think he said until 11am. "It's posted on the internet" he said.

As the homeowner stood in his driveway, the loud-mouth with the dogs (the kind that make people hate dog-walkers) telling his little mob that they should go stand on the sidewalk in front of the house, because the sidewalk is a public place and there was nothing he (the homeowner) could do ...

Well, I went on-line and found the link ... Parks and Rec dog parks

I guess that homeowner had done his homework, because I didn't know what the hours were ... I don't think I've ever seen a sign!

As I was leaving, I heard another female dog-walker talking to the guy with the dog saying "I can understand his frustration ..." I don't know what the final outcome was, but I did see Animal Control down the street later talking with residents from a house near the softball fields ...

As a dog owner / walker actually FROM the area I think there are a few simple rules we can follow in order to keep the peace ... Respect the homeowners ... obey the hours ... and don't draw attention to yourself by being a jerk. He even said he wouldn't care so much if it wasn't the same people he'd asked before not to hang out in front of his house with barking dogs ... By the way ... he is a police officer, just not in Petaluma. But come-on people ... if you know that ... it shouldn't matter where he works ... I'm sure he's got friends who DO work here in town, and, if you're not going to appease him by obeying the rules, who do you think he's going to call next?

You're absolutely right. My fam. is about to get a dog, and I hadn't thot much, yet, about the times that the dog parks are open. I'll remember to do that, now, because I am concerned about being a polite dog owner, and I do see that that was a rather rude group of dog owners.

It's been a while since my last post, and it seems things have quited down a bit. I will say, however, that I had noticed what appeared to be an increase in Animal Control patrols, and was even contacted by an Animal Control officer .. I think his name was Jason? Anyway, he explained to me that the regulations and area for the "dog run" and "Off leash" areas pertained to the Softball Fields ... not the entire length of Wiseman Park. The dogs were NOT ALLOWED to be off-leash near the playground, on and around the soccer fields or the transition area. The ONLY place dogs are allowed "off leash" at ANY time is the softball fields.

Now, like I said, I haven't heard much of anything lately ... everyone seems to be getting along, although I see a LOT of people with their dogs off-leash all over the place, all day long.

Tyr heading over to McNear. We see off leash dogs in the non-dog area daily (and call animal control frequently). We even recently saw an on leash dog badly bite a child (the child he was there with no less). I' really like to see a muzzle law- then the dogs could be off leash al lthey want. No barking, no biting.

I was vigorously attacked for this suggestion elsewhere in these forums.

whippis, you were vigorously attacked.....wow, kind of like you did to me w/ regard to the softball forum?