by Rochelle
I think I live in the least dog-friendly city ever to exist. Wellington City Council would beg to disagree with me however, citing that they currently have over 40 'Woof Woof Ruff' dog exercise areas, specifically built and maintained for the enjoyment of all dogs and their owners in Wellington - but with either no or inadequate fencing, no or inadequate numbers of rubbish bins, and not one light in any of the parks for safety after dark.
The City Council was presented with a petition signed by over 400 people (and that's just the number who signed their e-petition) one year ago, requesting that lighting be installed in dog exercise areas, for the safety of the public as well as the dogs. No action has been made on this (yet).
There has been recent debate here on the responsibilities dog owners face for owning a dog in the Wellington City Council governance. One of the debates is regarding a very popular dog-accessible area close to where I live - the Karori Cemetery. Many dog owners take their dogs here for exercise. The current status of the Cemetery is that dogs are allowed in the grounds anytime, on lead only. Many dog owners want this rule to change, and a petition has even begun which is asking for the Council to consider making Karori Cemetery accessible for off lead exercise during weekday mornings.
The latest proposal that the Council has put forward is to fine dog owners & walkers $300 if they are seen walking a dog and do not have a doggy poo bag and/or dispenser with them on their trip. It is commendable that the Council want people to take responsibility for their pet's messes, but I don't think threatening people with an excessive fine will stop those irresponsible owners from doing what they have no doubt always done. And, how on earth do they propose to police this? I can't see 8,500 Council members shadowing the same amount of registered dogs during each and every walk they go on. Which begs the question, what about those unregistered dogs?
A possibly positive piece of news to come from the Council's meeting is the proposal to either develop or build a dog park with rubbish receptacles, water stations, fences and perhaps (let's hope) even lighting. A 'destination dog park' you might say, for all dog owners to take their dogs to. That is definitely something that Wellington is sorely missing.
The Council has recently met to discuss the WCC dog control bylaw and will be opening recommendations, suggestions and debates to the general public from June onwards. It will be interesting to hear what comes of this.
Tell us about your dog exercise areas and Council initiatives to help dog owners enjoy exercising their dogs. What are you allowed to do? What can't you do? Where is the best place to exercise your dog?
Just up the road in Lower Hutt, we have quite good dog excercise areas. Eastbourne beach south of the shops is great, so if you ever travel out of town that's a dog friendly spot. The dog park in Wellington sounds like a great idea, in winter lighting is so sorely missing from any dog walking areas I know of. The hutt river is also a good area to walk and socialise with other dogs and owners. It is also a leash free, and the council claim it to be one of the biggest leash free areas in the country. It is a shame about the dog droppings though.
ReplyDeleteHi Tom - great to know that you have sourced excellent dog walking spots. I semi-regularly housesit for a client in Petone and I take their dogs to the Korokoro Gateway where we walk to roughly the Heretaunga boat club (which apparently is perfectly fine during non-daylight savings time). This is a nice area, as usually it's quiet and there aren't a whole lot of dogs out there, but it is full of debris and often a lot of rubbish which I think is due to Wellington's strong southerlies carrying all the trash onto the beach front.
ReplyDeleteAnother lady I know takes her dogs to the river almost every day and they have a great time swimming there.
Do you know if the HCC are thinking about incorporating a policy for dog owners to carry poo bag receptacles with them when they exercise their dogs like the WCC is trying to do? In my opinion, it is basic common sense and just comes as part of being a responsible dog owner (or carer in my case).