Auckland Dog Rules - Have Your Say!
Auckland Council is allowing public consultation on dog rules in Auckland until 10th May and I want to encourage as many local dog owners and non-owners alike to give feedback! Local drop-in sessions are happening across April and May (see link below) https://ourauckland.aucklandcouncil.govt.nz/articles/news/2019/04/have-your-say-on-auckland-s-dog-rules/
It’s been really sad to see increasingly negative commentary about dogs in public places (largely thanks to social media). The conversation is inevitably impassioned, with escalating opinions from both sides of the discussion. I understand that it’s scary and alarming to have bad interactions with dogs, but for the most part the dogs I see around Auckland are enjoying being outdoors and pretty well behaved. Sadly the limelight gets shone on the few and there’s not exactly a public platform for promoting all the good dogs out there (there might be an idea in there…!).
According to the National Dog Database (as at 31st May 2018), there were 560,511 registered dogs and only 2% of them were listed as menacing or dangerous, with 0.6% of owners listed as having active infringements.
The more we restrict where dogs can go and how they can exercise, the worse things are likely to become. In many cases these restrictions lead to reduced exercise, freedom to run, play and spend time with their family outdoors. This creates stress, boredom and anxiety which often leads to behaviour problems both at home, and when they’re able to get outdoors.
While having dog parks is good for some dogs, it’s not for others. If you follow the awesome Lewis Nicholls Dog Training on Facebook you may know the analogy that it’s a bit like saying the only time I’m allowed out of the house, I have to go to a nightclub. That’s definitely not my cup of tea.
I’d encourage non-owners and dog owners alike to consider this proposal. Personally I think that not allowing dogs in parks or beaches until 7pm, especially for the month of March when they are mostly empty, is excessive. Also changing the default to ‘on lead’ in public places will have a huge impact on available off lead spaces for dogs. 80% of Auckland public spaces are currently set to default off-lead for dogs.
I know it’s a long form but you don’t have to fill every section in – just select other and say something like ‘I don’t know enough about this to comment’. If you have the time to do a bit of research, I’d highly recommend being able to contribute to as many parts of the proposal as you can however. There is more detailed information about the changes on the Auckland Council website, or alternatively (and I know It’s not ideal but) you can search Facebook on this topic and review comments from other dog owners, trainers and industry advocates. Unfortunately as it’s opinion-based, there isn’t one qualified destination where you can go to understand exactly what these changes mean, but there are some great voices out there trying to make it easier to understand!
As a side note, I would also highly recommend parents encourage local schools to engage organisations like the awesome Kids Safe With Dogs to help teach the children in our community to be more confident and considerate around dogs as well. There’s some great resources on their site for kids and parents alike! I know this is a long post but thank you for reading it all if you got this far!