Why is it that a large majority in this country (and this forum is an indication) get upset by the statements of others when those that have complained are only talking about an inconsiderate and irresponsible minority. It is that minority that are ruining it for your future, not those that have very valid complaints. People look too much into "that is an attack on my freedom/values".
There is a failure in the system where the councils etc like to pass the buck. Here dogs must be restrained on a leash, however once they pass high tide mark on the shoreline the council apparently has no further jurisdiction. This doesn't mean letting dogs off leash is correct thing to be doing. I've always kept my kids close there as I don't trust ANY dog, and even they who have grown up with more pets than I care to think about regularly are intimidated by dogs at my local beach.
If you have a problem however, there is no point whinging about it as that solves nothing. If a dog threatens (which includes if you believe dog may hurt you or kids) it is assault, the owner is liable. If the dog attacks your kids you are able to defend yourself or them up to and including the death of the dog (at that immediate moment). If a dog is involved in a fight with another dog that is negligence on part of the owner and constitutes cruelty. In either case take down the details report it to the police and then council (advising them you have filed a complaint with the police).
Some of the comments on here show how trusting people are of something they do not actually control. I have worked dogs up to and including off lead in public, I still do not trust them even though they have protected me from injury on several occasions. Think of them like sharks in that with the right trigger be it another dog or whatever they will not recognise their owner and will not stop. For those that take 2 dogs it generally takes AT LEAST one grown male per dog to seperate them if they are fighting and that is with the luxury of a break bar. So how are you going to contain 2 dogs?
People can go on about control all they like but think of it this way: you are approached by several people in a situation you cannot back out of. You feel threatened so how do you react? Dogs are in the exact same situation in that they have fears the same as everything else however it is also compounded with protection of master. They have only 3 choices- fight, flight or submission. The comments about kids/people not being trusted is irrelevant. You can talk people out of an action, you can physically manipulate them without causing real harm. Imagine that any dispute you had with someone was done while each party was holding a knife and where any response was by way of body language or use of the knife, that is what dogs are capable of. A dog approaches your kids, you yell at it which raises the same feelings as it does when a stranger yells at you- it has 1 in 3 decision that it may bite you as response.
From what I have seen 99% of dogs that apparently are controlled are certainly not whilst off a leash let alone on it. Look at a properly trained dog and handler that go into a situation which can be as simple as another dog approaching them. The dog will continually try to gauge the reaction of the handler, watch how they glance back, often they step closer to the handler than pull away. If the handler raises their voice watch the hackles come up to which they will either leave the dog strung or subtly pat/rub them down. If you see none of that from a dog that is on a leash or off of it then owner has less control than they think.
I am appalled by some of the comments regarding killing animals, particularly by methods which result in very painful deaths. Cisco if you really wish to know why don't you try it to yourself or you could just google aspirin overdose. Control the owners don't punish the animals.
Regarding off-lead areas and no animal signed areas. There should be 0 tolerance for no animal areas. However people also have a choice that they should not take themselves or their children to off-lead areas as that is their negligence.
^^^"you're an idiot" or "you are an idiot" .... either one is correct. 
BTW - I thought this was a dog fight, not a cat fight.
its simple its a beach that alows dogs with out leashes then they dont have to be leashes ... but if ur dog is agressive u wouldnt take it to a beach full of families ?dogs who attacks ppl should get put down ....u wouldnt go swimming in a river full of crocodiles would u ..... so y do u expect other people to be comfortable to have ur dog running around ur dog could attack some one at anny moment.... its not like u can say to ur dog " dont attackt that little girl over thier...... get some comen sence
Some LEGAL information.
Whether in an off-leash exercise area or not as an owner you are responsible. Here is a reference to the LAW and your responsibility that you may not be aware of: It is illegal in any area to allow your dog to run ('rush') at a person. http://is.gd/4shbW
"Clause 33A of the Companions Animal Regulation 2008 requires all councils to report dog attacks in their area within 72 hours of receiving the information.
A dog attack can include any incident where a dog rushes at, attacks, bites, harasses or chases any person or animal (other than vermin), whether or not any injury is caused to the animal or person."
I'm tired of politely asking dog owners to respect the boundaries of the dog exercise area only to be fobbed off or abused. Even when a dog has pissed on my belongings or jumped on one of my kids and scratched them. The dog owners who are commenting here think they don't need to respect others or the law have assisted me in coming to a simple conclusion, you don't respond to reasonable argument and are completely self-centred. So here's the simple solution, I will photograph every dog owner on any beach or street with an unleashed dog and submit it to council with a formal complaint. A $550 dollar fine might just make you respect boundaries. I suggest anyone with concerns of the same nature should do the same. Councils are legally obliged to take these complaints very seriously.
Today's Sydney Morning Herald report is.gd/4si2V
mkseven... well said.
O for farks sake. Dog beaches have dogs on them, so look after your kids. Non-dog beaches should not have dogs on them, if you take yours anyway then you're a twat.
Simple.
My staffy/blue heeler is untrained and unfenced. When we take her to the beach, she runs around happily in the surf and doesn't bother anyone else.
As for small children. She lets them approach her most of the time and would only lick them to death with appreciation.
It's not the dogs fault that it bites small things (i.e. children, birds). Its the owners. Simple really, TRAIN your bloody dogs and get rid of leashes.
If you have a leash on the dog all the time and it cant listen to you, then what do you think is gonna happen when you take it off the leash???
Rant over...
i hate parents at the beach with kids (not all of them just the annoying ones )
The amount of times ive nearly been tripped over by parents with cameras running around looking for that perfect shot of there little baby.
Do parents give a sh1t when their little one kick their ball on you .No not really as long as their kids are having fun
What about when your fully relaxed almost asleep when some Mum screams at the top of her voice for her little monster to stop throwing sand.
or the time when you've found a nice quiet spot and then you hear the dreaded sound "kids over here this spots perfect" and then mum and dad with 3 OUT OF CONTROL kids take over your little piece of paradise
i take my dog to a dog friendly beach (fully signed) which is enclosed by cliffs either side so they are fully contained except for the flight of steps which is the only access point.
you still get people coming down to the beach which is quite small without dogs to have a glass of wine and some food to watch the sun go down
Its their choice,but dont get p1ssed off if a dog comes over to sniff your food or p1sses on your towel
there about 5 beach's in Perth that allows dogs
IF YOU DONT LIKE OR TRUST DOGS THEN DONT GO THERE ITS NOT ROCKET SCIENCE
By the way i pick up my dogs sh1t i hate doing it it makes my stomach churn but i do it cause i don't want anyone stepping in it.
Though it is funny when somebody other than you steps in it.
The issue that I raised origionally is that people are largely ignoring the signs (local laws) and taking dogs onto public beachs. Clearly the owners of pets want space to exersize and enjoy the beach, these places exist and are signed. This is fine by me and unless there is a really good reason I would avoid these spots.
What is not on in my book is letting a dog loose in public spaces. It doesnt matter how friendly or well trained the animal is. Also people should never leave the **** from thier animals in anywhere public except the bin!
This just seems basic and reasonable to me.
Thanks for the replies, its interesting to see that there is plenty of people unhappy with the lack of enforcement of the rules and lack of common decency - respect shown by many dog owners.
Dogs should not be on "dog free" beaches.
People who don't like dogs should not be on Dog Beaches!
I can only comment on Sydney, but there are very few places that Dogs are actually allowed on the beach. If you don't like dogs on beaches, go to one of the other 98%
I take my dog to the beach and she loves being off the leash, she happily trots along next to me and my wife without straying away from us or running up to people kids or other dogs, even on the leash I am astounded at the amount of kids that just run up to her and try to grab at her ears and tail. What's more amazing is the parents just stand there and watch, smiling happily until my dog barks or growls at some kid hanging off her, then they are running over all upset and yelling at me. Teach your kids not to run up to strange dogs and try to pat them or pull on them. I've had plenty of kids ask me to pat my red heeler and she happily sits and lets them pat her while she licks them to death. I also take my dog very reguarly to the local dog park which has a large fenced area for the dogs to run around in, sometimes there can be up to 16 dogs there at one time with no problems, there is also a large fenced playground for the kids to play in with all the latest "safe" equipment to play on, but for some reason the kids want to run around with the dogs yelling and screaming with the parents watching, again as soon as a dog arcs up at one of the kiddies the parents carry on in the dog park.
Don't blame the dogs or the kids, Blame the owners or the parents.
I follow the rules the council have applied to the beach I frequent, which has times for on leash and off leash times.
