Sacramento rangers warn of safety concerns with dogs at local parks. Here are the risks
Dogs being at parks is commonplace in the Sacramento region. There are, after all, enough registered dogs to fill an SEC football stadium — and not everyone has a yard big enough to let their dog run.
But as ordinary as seeing a dog in a park might be, the risks involved can sometimes be forgotten.
“We encourage (people bringing dogs to parks),” Sacramento chief ranger Leonard Orman said. “But it’s also among the number one complaints we get is people with dogs off leash. Leash dogs running in front of bicycles, having issues with equestrians, fishermen getting upset because people are letting their unleashed dogs swim in the water while they’re trying to fish. So there’s a lot of issues that go along with that.”
Orman reiterated that under Sacramento County Code 9.26.061 (d) all dogs in Sacramento parks must be on leashes no longer than six feet, including retractable ones. The city’s list of 12 dog parks can be found on the city’s website.
Of course, the biggest safety issue with dogs in public parks is bites.
“We do get a lot of dog bites,” Orman said. “A lot of people get bitten by dogs because they’re not under control, they’re not leashed. And obviously we have (un-housed) folks that live in parks right now that have dogs, and they are the source of some of that. Ultimately, it’s spread across the whole parkway, and folks that are just visitors we have the same issues with.”
There’s also the issue of wildlife, which is still an issue in the region, although less than the nearby foothills where bears and mountain lions roam.
“Probably the more common threat here would be coyotes and snakes, and/or a dog taking off after a rabbit or some other smaller creature, and that’s how you might end up not being able to find your dog again because you’re not in control of it at that time,” Orman said. “So there is an issue.
“The other side of that is the impact on wildlife,” Orman continued. “We commonly see folks that are letting their dogs run through fields, through the forested areas, in the water. None of that’s permitted within our parks. So not only is that a safety threat to the dog, but it’s also impacting our wild life in the parks.”
How are the leash laws enforced? Orman said many of his rangers spend their days giving out citations to those letting their dogs run leash-free or on leashes that extend longer than the permitted six feet. Many people are often given warnings.
“When I’m driving through the parkway, as soon as (people) realize I’m a ranger, they’re re-putting their leash back on their dog,” he said. “Which tells me everybody knows. So there are a lot of good reasons why we have those rules.”
This story was originally published August 21, 2023 at 5:00 AM.
