A recent opinion piece in the New York Times grabbed headlines with a brutal take: “Dog Parks Are Great for People. Too Bad They're Terrible for Dogs.” Maybe it's made you second-guess that local dog park — but your pup is a high-octane ball of energy that needs serious exercise. Sure, walks are lovely and your backyard handles fetch duty, but you ache to let your dog zoom full-tilt in a big, fenced space. There's a dog park right around the corner. Should you go for it — or run the other way? Like most things in life, the answer is: it depends.
Let's start with the good stuff. A big, fenced-in space is a golden ticket for letting dogs cut loose and sprint at full speed. Provided every dog there is genuinely social (we'll circle back to that), tearing around with new pals can be wildly stimulating — physically, emotionally, and mentally. And it's not just the dogs reaping social perks. Hanging out with fellow owners can be a genuine pleasure, and regulars at the same park often form little social circles, yakking away while their pups romp blissfully. At my local park, the same group of women gathers every morning. They arrive early enough that they're typically the only ones there. And even though all their dogs get along swimmingly, they never drop their guard. They read body language, pull their dogs for breaks when excitement gets too intense, and nip potential problems in the bud before they blow up. That, my friends, is the absolute best-case scenario.
Now for the not-so-good news. First up: the overwhelming majority of dog parks are completely unregulated. We're not talking about a paid, private park here — we mean your typical public dog park. (One alternative is the Sniffspot app, which lets people rent out their backyards by the hour to dog owners hunting for secure spaces where their pups can burn energy. Most listings run around $10 an hour for one dog, or $15 for two. And New York City even has an array of members-only dog parks, with annual fees stretching anywhere from free to $2,200.)
ceremonial paw — She's filmed chilling footage of dogs getting bullied — some targeted again and again.
At public parks, no one screens dogs for temperament, and there's no on-site monitor to break up fights or kick out unruly dogs or humans. Factor in all the owners who don't watch their dogs or can't spot trouble brewing, and bad things WILL and DO happen. Even owners who know their dogs can be aggressive toward other dogs show up anyway — putting every pup in the park at risk. Although I'd never bring my own dogs to a crowded dog park, I spent huge chunks of time gathering dog-park footage for my Dissecting the Dynamics of Dog-Dog Play seminar. Sadly, I captured endless incidents of dogs getting bullied — some of them targeted over and over. There were also plenty of terrified dogs who, unbeknownst to their owners, were having zero fun. And of course, there were countless skirmishes and even full-blown fights. Understand this: a dog attacked by another dog can walk away scarred not just physically, but emotionally and mentally. Even a dog with zero prior issues can develop fear-based reactivity after just one incident. I know lots of owners shrug this off, insisting it's never happened to their dog. To those folks, I say: not yet.
Plenty of professional trainers — and I'm one of them — will tell you to skip dog parks altogether unless they're well regulated, completely empty of other dogs, or at bare minimum you personally know the other dogs and trust that everybody gets along. But if you're determined to keep going, here's my advice: First, pause for a few moments before entering and size up the scene. Make sure every dog looks like they're having a blast, with loose, relaxed body language. Watch for any hints of tension or snarky behavior. Once you're inside, if another dog bullies yours (or the other way around), step in immediately and call your dog over, away from the action. Give your pup a breather and a few quiet minutes to decompress. If things escalate, or you get a bad vibe for any reason, leave right away. After any aggressive incident, the whole energy of the park shifts, and that lingering tension often sparks more scuffles — between the original fighters or innocent bystanders. Bottom line: be your dog's advocate, whether that means visiting dog parks as safely as possible or ditching them for alternatives like play dates.
Obsessed with this story yet? Then buckle up, because there's a whole kennel of tail-wagging, heart-pumping adventures waiting in every issue of Modern Dog magazine. Smash that subscribe button RIGHT NOW — you definitely won't want to miss a single paw-print!