Upcoming community meeting regarding “dogs in parks”

February 17, 2008

It’s freezing rain outside, a break from the dumps of snow we have been receiving, but my mind is on greener times thinking about my 2 1/2 year old daughter and her love of running. Why am I thinking about running? Well, I have just received an email about an upcoming meeting that Parks, Forestry, and Recreation are hosting Tuesday February 19th at 7pm at Arlington Middle School, where they will discuss the “Dogs in Parks” strategy, and specifically, what this means to us in Cedarvale Ravine. Anyone who has ever walked in the Ravine knows that dogs are off-leash right now (illegally) throughout the whole park, and anyone who has tried to contact the City about this knows that they can do very little. There are too few by-law officers to address this huge problem. In addition, few dog-owners arewilling to place their dogs on a leash when requested. What does this mean? Well, it means that my 2 1/2 year old can’t run free without the risk of a dogjumping up on her. Over the past year, on my block alone, a 50-year old woman was bitten (requiring stitches, and almost surgery), a smaller dog was badly bitten (requiring an expensive visit to the vet, and the dog’s pain and suffering), a pregnant woman was knocked over (no apologies from the dog or the dog owner) and a small child was jumped and knocked over (they now refuse to go anywhere near the park). It’s a real shame, because the good dog owners seem few and far between.

So even though it’s the month of February, and the streets have yet to be cleaned in any decent sort of manner, the City has called a meeting to talk about on on-leash area. My hope is that any on-leash area will be accompanied by a commitment from all dog owners to respect the laws of the rest of the park, so that this summer I too can run around with my little girl in the park, chasing a ball.

Please come to the meeting and share your thoughts- Tuesday February 19th, 7pm, arlington middle school, cafetorium (501 Arlington Ave)

Comments

2 Responses to “Upcoming community meeting regarding “dogs in parks””

  1. henry on February 21st, 2008 11:45 pm

    It’s a shame that you have categorized isolated incidents with a majority of dog owners when in fact it is the opposite (if this generalizes most dog owners in the neighbourhood you would have 3000+ incidents to talk about). This broad assumption is what leads to the misconceptions and creates much angst in many neighbourhoods around the city. I would ask you to take a moment to reconsider and work to a more positive frame of mind.

    I would think that an off leash area would solve the problems you speak of… while I feel that there are some dog owners that are irresponsible the majority are courteous and want nothing but the best for everyone. I feel the tone in your post being quite negative and anti-dog as opposed to looking positively to what Cedarvale could become, by truly finding a solution that works for everyone. Right now the status quo is not workable and the dog folks are trying to find a way to make it work better.

    You should also understand that the People, Dogs, and Parks strategy was passed last summer to address the concerns you raise about by-law enforcement and finding a safe and secure way for dogs to have an area to exercise. Please have a read of the policy document at:
    https://www.toronto.ca/parks/dogs.htm

    I hope you can look forward to this summer where your girl can learn more about the wonderful joy that dogs can bring rather than shielding her and focusing on the negative experiences. It will only lead to further misled opinions in the future… I see it almost every day. You can tell which children are enriched by the experiences of encountering dogs vs those that turn the other way because they were educated to do so…

  2. John Cummings on February 26th, 2008 10:08 pm

    I do not agree with the above comment by “Orit” (who is “Orit” anyway: why can’t he or she give his or her name?). I walk in the ravine almost every day. Most of the dog walkers try to keep control of their dogs. I agree there are a lot of dogs. It is a very heavily used park. I think what is needed is some kind of accommodation between the dog owners, dog walkers and people like myself who walk in the ravine every day without a dog. How this can be mediated by the city is another question that might bear some discussion at a community meeting. There are no obvious answers and comments like the above do not really help.

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