Clare beaches totally dog unfriendly

Taco Chips

Hey all,

Long time holidayer in Co. Clare between Kilkee, Lahinch, Miltown etc... Have noticed this year the amount of signs up around the place saying that dogs are banned from beaches, parks, the Pollock Holes etc... between the hours of 9am to 6pm everyday. As a dog owner I find this all a bit much.

Now I completely support rules being in place regarding dogs being on leashes on beaches and not allowed run rampant and bothering people, heavy fines for owners not cleaning their dogs poo. That is an absolute minimum. But outright banning dogs from public places like this is surely unacceptable. Why doesn't a dog have as much right to have a splash around in the sea, why can't dog owners take their pets out for walks along the sand. It's a beach and it's for everyone.

Please don't reply and tell me it's because dogs are running loose all over the place. I've been coming to Clare for 20+ years and been a dog owner for 5 and have never come across an incident with other people's dogs. I'm totally in favour of them being leashed. I just think that banning them from beaches shouldn't be something the council is allowed to do. Seems like a very reactionary and regressive thing to do on the back of some silly perpetual complainers who are anti dog.

Anyone got thoughts on this?

Balagan

These restrictions (aren't they from 11.00 a.m. to 6.00pm?) during the summer months have been in place for years now. Before that the beaches were dog toilets and irresponsible owners let dogs run riot and didn't gave two hoots for children, old people or anybody for that matter. Even with these restrictions, you can routinely find dog poo left to be swept up by the tide. People constantly try to bring their dogs on the beach off leash in the non-exempted areas despite seeing kids nearby. Don't think of it being anti-dog but a necessary action to deal with the many owners who are lacking in the intelligence, hygiene and social skills department. Poor dogs to be at their mercy anyway. Doughmore Beach at Doonbeg is free of these restrictions for dogs and maybe horses. Unless Trump has built a wall to keep them out!

syklops

Ireland is dog unfriendly. Its not just Clare beaches.

Deagol

I'm afraid I'd have to say I'd be 100% behind the restrictions. I don't think I've ever been to a beach and not found dog crap all over the place and I routinely have seen loose dogs charging around the beach scaring children etc.

I'm sorry, but if you aren't happy with the restrictions then you need to look at the dog owners who don't act responsibly first and foremost.

Mr.H

Some children run wild bothering people. Should they be banned too?

fryup

long overdue imo,

you do realise that dog dirt can cause blindness in children ??

uck51js9zml2yt

No problem with that OP. Last thing I want is to be in my bare feet and walking in dog sh!te.

weisses

fryup wrote: »

long overdue imo,

you do realise that dog dirt can cause blindness in children ??

You should be more worried about this (tip of the Iceberg)

http://www.irishtimes.com/news/environment/epa-report-highlights-raw-sewage-discharge-at-45-sites-1.2442460

FrKurtFahrt

I'm not in Clare, first off. I walk my dog on the beach daily and we both enjoy it. However, the latest I've ever taken him out is about 8-15 am, at which time there are only other dog-walkers, and occasional exercisers. There are never swimmers or sun-bathers or anything similar. Any dog-walkers I've met seem responsible, and clean up accordingly. While I agree to some extent with OP, I'm happy to be off the beach long before time restrictions apply - but maybe an early start doesn't suit.

Atlantic Dawn

Mr.H wrote: »

Some children run wild bothering people. Should they be banned too?

They don't usually bite though :pac:

fryup

^^^^^^^^

and they don't defecate willy nilly (well i hope not)

Stealthfins

I think they're allowed on the beach after 6.
But you would get tired of dog's ****ting on the beaches and it left there.

Nothing worse than standing on dog **** and it going up between your toes...

Fanore is the worst beach for that.

Clareman

I don't think it's just a Clare or an Irish thing, lots of beaches around the world don't allow dogs, there was even a scene in Marley and Me about it.

davo2001

Mr.H wrote: »

Some children run wild bothering people. Should they be banned too?

If they sh1t all over the place then yes!

Taco Chips

I just think its a pity. Absolutely agree with everyone who said that dog fouling is a problem and owners that don't clear that up should be fined heavily and punished. But it seems bit of a cack handed manoeuvre to out right ban dogs during the day. Dogs are parts of families too, people take them on holidays, want to take them for swims and leisurely beach sessions. Seeing as a beach is public property it just seems exclusionary to me. There ought to be a smarter way of dealing with it.

Henry Ford III

Dogs aren't banned from the beach in Lahinch at anytime. They must be on a lead when it's busy however.

A lot of owners don't comply with the rule however, and dog poo is frequently not picked up either.

Clareman

Henry Ford III wrote: »

Dogs aren't banned from the beach in Lahinch at anytime. They must be on a lead when it's busy however.

A lot of owners don't comply with the rule however,and dog poo is frequently not picked up either.

Unfortunately this isn't just a beach issue, if all dog owners could be fully responsible for their dog and it's business everything would be ok, it's the ones that aren't responsible that ruin it for everyone

chuckles30

Henry Ford III wrote: »

Dogs aren't banned from the beach in Lahinch at anytime. They must be on a lead when it's busy however.

Lahinch is covered by the beachlaws and dogs are banned during the specified hours. The council website has the details of the beaches covered by these rules.
http://www.clarecoco.ie/Accessible_HTML/waste_water_environment/Beach_Bye_laws/Clare_Beach_Bye_Laws.html

Balagan

Mr.H wrote: »

Some children run wild bothering people. Should they be banned too?

Children are people!

Mary63

Absolutely delighted to read that dogs are banned,I might take a few days in Clare this year.

I would love to see dogs banned from public parks too except a defined area,thats means only dog owners will go home with dog dirt on their shoes,everyone else can enjoy the rest of the park.

I did the Bray to Greystones walk recently and it was disgusting,dog dirt everywhere,I won't be doing it again.Killiney Hill is the same,its a dog toilet at this stage.I can't walk on any of the roads near me because of the dog dirt and I feel so sorry for wheelchair users,at least people whose baby buggies are covered in filth can clean the wheels,how to wheelchair users manage if they live on their own.

buck65

No complaints, I regularly walk in Lee's Rd and other woods and dogs are frequently let off leads and come bounding about the corner and frighten the kids. Also I live in an estate with at least 3 dogs that bark at night and sh1t everywhere. Keep them the hell off beaches for the summer.

fima

Personally I love the ban in kilkee, if they could extend it across the town now it would be great .... trying to walk from the pollock holes towards town or up the scenic route/cliff walk is a dog poo minefield.

There will always be irresponsible dirty dog owners who leave their dogs ****e everywhere. Unfortunately that impacts on the responsible owners but what can you do?

I don't own a dog because I couldn't face picking up their crap, yet when I want to send my son out to play when we are in kilkee I have to go out and do a sweep of the grass and inevitably pick up some manky dog poo.

Jim Martin

Balagan wrote: »

Children are people!

And can be just as bothersome to everyone as dogs - but when all's said & done, it's adults who are responsible (or, rather irresponsible) in both cases!

Jim Martin

fima wrote: »

Personally I love the ban in kilkee, if they could extend it across the town now it would be great .... trying to walk from the pollock holes towards town or up the scenic route/cliff walk is a dog poo minefield.

There will always be irresponsible dirty dog owners who leave their dogs ****e everywhere. Unfortunately that impacts on the responsible owners but what can you do?

I don't own a dog because I couldn't face picking up their crap, yet when I want to send my son out to play when we are in kilkee I have to go out and do a sweep of the grass and inevitably pick up some manky dog poo.

I suspect that even where religiously picking up the poo, there are remains of toxocariasis left behind which is known to cause blindness in humans - scary stuff!

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toxocariasis
http://www.mypawsitivelypets.com/2014/01/5-common-parasites-and-diseases-that.html

Niall_G

As a responsible dog owner I visited Lahinch on Saturday but left my dog at home. On a very busy beach there were numerous dogs, several running free. So, in the usual Irish solution we just bring in a law with no enforcement, so that the people who were always law abiding anyway continue to be, and those who were not continue to cause the same problems.

Henry Ford III

mitresize5

For the first time ever I found myself thanking nearly every post on a thread.

OP as you can see it comes down to one thing - dog ****.

I just spent a week in Kilkee and the first thing I did when I got back to work yesterday was email Clare Co Co. The amount of dog **** on the footpath there is an absolute disgrace. What kind of animal leave there dog **** on a footpath and doesn't clean it up. Especially in a sea side resort in the height of summer.

To be honest OP I have no sympathy with dog owners not being able to let there dogs run free. If you are looking to blame some one then blame other dog owners. And there is no point saying its a small irresponsible few judging by the amount of **** on the footpaths