All Dog Parks Are Not Created Equal

I am sad to report that as of January 10, 2015 Cricket's Corner, the dog park adjacent to Rancho Coastal Humane Society, has closed.  Their closure coincides with the opening of the new Encinitas Community Park, at Santa Fe Road and the 5 Freeway.  Ever since I got Pepper in November of 2011, I've been a regular at Cricket's Corner.  It was there that I met two women who have become great friends, and Pepper met some wonderful dogs to run and tussle with.  Over the course of the years, I have been to many dog parks, and I can tell you they can be as different as night and day.

Some dog parks are dirt, others are grass, still others are wood chips or artificial turf.  Believe it or not, dogs have a preference.  Pepper loved Cricket's Corner, a mixture of dirt, grass and shrubs, and he loved running around.  The new Encinitas park is all grass, and he just LOVES that.  He runs and jumps like a puppy!  Our local park, the beautiful new Alga Norte Park in Carlsbad has a dog park with wood chips.  Pepper hates it.  We go there and he sits on a bench next to me.  If I do get him to get up and move around, he gets sticks caught in his hair and dust and dirt in his mouth.

One thing I loved about Cricket's Corner was that only neutered dogs were allowed.  This led to less fighting.  Most public parks do not have such restrictions, and you may find aggressive dogs there.  At the new Encinitas park I have found the nicest mix of dogs, and people.  Owners watch their dogs, and get involved if there is any aggressiveness.  I go there with confidence that Pepper is going to have a good experience.  I have also enjoyed the people I have met there.  Old, young, children, grandmothers, everyone is having a great time, everyone is friendly and every one is keeping an eye on their dog.  I've been to parks with aggressive dogs, usually big dogs.  Often they will run together like a pack, and if there is a small dog like Pepper who wants to play, they pick on him and he ends up running for cover.  Often they will get too aggressive and hurt him, and owners will tell me their dog is just playing.  I try to stay away from parks where inattentive owners do not control their dogs.

I've probably been to at least 10 different dog parks in North County, and I can say that the new Encinitas Community Park is superior to them all.  The surface, the dogs, the people, and the hours make this my park of choice.  What am I going to do when I move to Oceanside?  It will be about 30 minutes away, instead of 10 minutes away.  That means I will rarely go, and Pepper will have to find new friends at a local park.