By Joanna Schwarz
Published: Nov 7, 2014
Have you heard of Rdogs – The Responsible Dog Owners’ Group of Squamish? We formed as a FaceBook group a mere 2 1/2 weeks ago. But in that time, over 300 members have signed up. Rdogs is dedicated to positive, proactive solutions and finding what motivates people to be responsible dog owners. Rdogs held an inaugural meeting and and a few days later presented to Council. At that October 21 meeting, Council voted to move forward on a number of issues Rdogs presented. Clearly, people are starting to take note.
How did the The Responsible Dog Owners’ Group of Squamish get started? Maren Bruun and myself – Joanna Schwarz – are the founding members. Maren, as a certified dog trainer and behaviour specialist, long held a dream of starting such a group. An unfortunate event brought the two of us together. Two months ago, an unprovoked dog attack by an off-leash doberman/shepherd at Garibaldi Highlands School left me with a injured wrist and 16 punctures to my leg – five of which needed stitches.(See related link story)
There was a flood of responses that came in through social media and in person. Clearly a lot of people were frustrated about and being affected by dog issues in Squamish. Could something good come out of this I wondered? [manual_related_posts]
As a former dog owner myself, I did not want to see a community where the answer to dog problems was “No dogs allowed”. That’s when Maren and I decided to create Rdogs in the hope that dog owners realize the importance of being responsible in order to ensure access to public places in the future: that there be areas to share, both on leash and off; that there be dog parks where animals can run free and keep up their social skills; that there be education about how to be safe around dogs and education for dog owners about dog training and behaviour.
Then instead of “No dogs allowed”, the answer becomes a resounding, “Yes, dogs allowed.” We envision our community as a place where everyone – including an increasing number of tourists who recreate here, children and elderly, those scared of dogs and those not so keen on them, and those “head over heels” in love with their canine friends – can share the outdoors and feel safe. And in including “everyone” we think also of our dogs with special needs, those that are shy or simply less socially inclined and need space.
“Education will be a big part of our mandate,” Maren says. “In fact, education is key to most issues we brought before Council. We covered 8 areas which were: 1. off leash and on leash areas; 2. clear and adequate signage; 3. poop clean-up; 4. education; 5. licencing; 6. Animal Control support; 7. dog parks and most importantly; 8. a budget in 2015 that allows for much needed improvements.”
Once again, we are pleased that Council put a motion forward and voted unanimously to work on several of the issues brought before them. We will have a staff person working with us shortly. With the public behind us, we feel confident the new council will support us in the new year. If you care about dogs and want to see improvements in our community, go to Rdogs FaceBook site and join the discussion. https://www.facebook.com/
Patricia Marini says
Right on!! Yes please lets get education going especially now since dogs are allowed
in Banks. On a leash, please , just because you like dogs doesn’t mean I do.
G_h says
Before the dog lobby scores another cent from the districts’ tax payers they should start obeying the existing rules. In a park near my home there is an ever-growing number of signs requesting dogs be leashed. Yet large numbers of dogs are taken there to defecate and “exercise” every day – and you will never seen one on leash, ever. This R-Dogs thing reminds me of the way the NRA deals with mass shooting incidents in the USA: drown out the debate then co-opt any attempt at action in order to turn the outcome 180 degrees away from an appropriate response. In the same way as gun companies support the NRA, it is no surprise to me that one of the organisers of “R-Dogs” makes a living from dog ownership.
If any money has to spent – or DoS time wasted – on dog issues it should be funded dollar-for-dollar from dog fines and licenses.
KL says
This comment confuses me. Rdogs is trying to get those people to stop letting their dogs defecate and run loose. As a group they want to work with the District and the hope is to put enough public pressure on the offenders so that they will change their habits. This is a positive approach by a large group of responsible dog owners and residents who see a need for change for all. By no means is the founding member who works with dogs for a living benefiting financially by this group. Her experience and knowledge of dog behaviour and training is a huge asset to Rdogs. These are concerned citizens of Squamish who want to make it a better and safer place for all including 2 and 4 legged beings.
Clifford Lang says
My Self as owner of two dogs , everyone should be responsible for their actions , when you are on a trail you see a off leash dog or you have a off leash dog hook it up and let others walk by, just don’t say its ok my dog is friendly because who ever you say that to, that person does not know that . Also myself dogs or dogs over 6months should be licenced , dogs should be on leash in parks , should not be allowed on ball fields , tennis courts running loose , every day you see no owners with their dogs that are roaming the streets and no collar , where are the owners ? Not fair for the dog , so my comment is Please be responsible for your pet and avoid of them being hurt in the end from wild life , vehicles , be nice and not cruel they need you to care for them , I love my dogs , thank you .
heather gee says
A huge amount of money could be made from fining dog-owners – as there is no end to the disregard paid to local By-laws. Nobody has mentioned dogs left untethered in the backs of big trucks, just an accident waiting to happen. Education will not stop the locals from leaving their dogs in hot cars – and never using sun-shields on the windows .. only fines would put a stop to those incidences.
Clifford Lang says
Dogs that are loose in back of trucks , here is a good tip for tethering or k9 in a back of truck ( get a nice piece of thick nylon rope & a good quick release hook , first of all make sure your rope is a little longer than the width of the truck box ,you tether the quick release that’s the hook the dog is hooked to is in the middle of rope ,you hook both ends of the rope to the front of box inside ,with a little slack so your dog can lay down if it gets tired of standing ,but you do not want your dog to go from side to side of truck , the dog should be in the middle of truck box at the front tethered and safe & put a matt down for him . a other way is a crate for your dog ,thank you for being safe 🙂 Dogs should not be loose in the box of any truck
Hounded says
I am appalled at the number of times I have to avoid stepping in dog excrement on the sidewalk in town and on the trail that I walk.I am tired of being charged ,by off leash dogs as I walk in the local parks.I frankly don’t feel safe walking around my townhouse complex,with its huge number of off leash dogs,whose owners are nowhere in sight.Thank you so much for addressing this problem.The animal control people are overworked and need more funding to increase the number of officers to deal with the ever growing numbers of irresponsible dog owners that are moving to Squamish,so that they can let their dogs run free. Hounded
Karen says
Langara College in Vancouver, is also trying to work with canine handlers to ensure they understand their local bylaws and the needs of animals in their care. Recently Langara Continuing Studies launched an Advanced Dog Walking Professional Certificate program to complement their Level 1 Professional Dog Walker training program. Cities and municipalities have applauded this kind of training and recognize the need for those who walk dogs to better understand how to be respectful of other dogs, their owners, the general public and the land they use to exercise their dogs. Langara is very fortunate to have renowned animal behaviourist Dr. Rebecca Ledger as the lead instructor for this program. We hope that by providing this level of training, to as many people as possible, that incidents of animals being injured or euthanized due to irresponsibility will occur far less frequently.