Hello! Our organization is based on the island of Oʻahu and only about 10 percent of our city and county parks allow people to walk their leashed dogs. One of the largest does not even allow pets on the sidewalks in the park. We are working with the Parks Department to flip the status quo to the default being park access for leashed dogs unless there is a compelling reason to prohibit dog walking.
I am looking for ammunition to combat the opposition, which will come from people who see bad behavior - letting dogs off leash where they shouldn't and not picking up after them - and argue more park access will mean more bad behavior. The Parks Department is also looking for advice on how to make this change successful.
Does anyone have best practices to suggest on making parks friendly to pets while discouraging bad behavior? Any examples of park conversions and how they went? I have the HABRI research to help with the why, so more interested in how and evidence that concerns are overblown.
Mahalo!
Steph
#LawsandPublicPolicy------------------------------
Steph Kendrick
Hawaiian Humane Society
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