Fingal County Council to provide off-leash dog run

axle108

Blanch Gazette has reported that Fingal County Council is to provide a designated fenced off area, where owners can bring their animals and allow them off leash. The Millenium park in Blanchardstown has been chosen and if successful, it will then be rolled out to other parks.
The area is to have water and waste facilities, with the onus on owners to clean up after their dog.

The report states that Fingal County Council outlined its proposals during an area committee meeting in Blanchardstown last week.

This has been a long wait for all dog owners. Lets hope its the start of many to come.

Whilst there was nothing in the report concerning restricted breeds, i fear the council may not allow all breeds run free in this park. Hopefully im wrong.

ISDW

Thats great.

Downsides, as you say, probably no RBs allowed, and once they have an off lead area in a park, the rest of the park tends to become on lead only.

Zapperzy

Would the same rules not apply for RB's as it's a public area? Or is it considered a private area? Now just to get one in the west, ye dubliners seem to hog everything!

axle108

ISDW wrote: »

Thats great.

Downsides, as you say, probably no RBs allowed, and once they have an off lead area in a park, the rest of the park tends to become on lead only.

I agree. Problem is a local Fine Gael councillor says hes receiving constant complaints about the amount of dog dirt in our parks, playing fields and its a real public health issue. The motion by this councillor for FCC to allocate areas as poop patches in D15 parks resulted in a proposal for the off leash area. I think if the complaints were to continue and a different viewpoint had come out, we'd see some other measures being introduced.

Zapperzy

axle108 wrote: »

I agree. Problem is a local Fine Gael councillor says hes receiving constant complaints about the amount of dog dirt in our parks, playing fields and its a real public health issue. The motion by this councillor for FCC to allocate areas as poop patches in D15 parks resulted in a proposal for the off leash area. I think if the complaints were to continue and a different viewpoint had come out, we'd see some other measures being introduced.

Poop patches! :eek: Presumably whoever suggested that has never owned a dog, when my dog has to go he has to go! I always pick up though.
I took a quick trip up north to strabane recently and walking along a footpath there was a special red dog poo bin, anytime I'v been up north there are loads of these bins everywhere. Bit off topic too but touring around up there there were loads of lovely well kept picnic areas with loads of bins, benches and toilets in some places but always so well kept and clean, then you come down here and you find an old rotten bench plonked in an overgrown patch of grass up to your knees right beside a noisy busy road with no bin at all. And the odd occassion there is a bin it's usually overflowing with rubbish all around it.

My local beach doesn't even have a bin, I pick up the dog's poo anyways and bring it home but I'm not surprised some places are teeming with poo everywhere. Putting in extra bins will not solve the problem completely as there will always be some who see it below them to bend down and pick it up but it will certainly help with the problem.

ISDW

I agree Zapperzy, I couldn't believe when we moved back here that there aren't poo bins. There is one at the entrance to my local beach, but unfortunately, as there are no normal bins,in the summer, the poo bin gets full up of normal rubbish, so you can't actually put the poo bag in it. Not so bad in the winter when its only dog walkers on the beach, but then it doesn't get emptied very often, so sometimes again, you can't fit anything else in it.

As usual, it is the mindless few, who don't pick up after their dogs, or keep them under control, that spoil it for the rest.

However, I would love to see a council ban drinks bottles and cans from parks, never done a study, but I wonder what the ratio is of litter to dog poo? Dog owners are an easy target though.