Letter to the editor — November 29, 2010

 

Keep the faith. Iola will have a dog park. A dog park was near the top of the list of desirable park plans suggested by Landworks Studio derived from public feedback. Landworks’ primary objective, when it came to parks, was to improve existing parks and develop uses for area that came to the city following the 2007 flood. Since the city parks department has to mow these areas, having a use for them makes a lot of sense.

From the people perspective, a dog park makes sense because it responds to a difference of opinion between dogs and humans. Both species need exercise. A dog’s natural instincts are to respond to that need; they don’t understand why their human doesn’t run with them. A human’s natural instinct (for too large a percentage) is to avoid the need whenever possible.

Some dog owners get exercise by walking their dogs. Walking a mile with a very small dog probably does the job. The very small dog takes several steps for each step of the owner. But as the dogs become larger the value of this exercise decreases. At some point, I would guess around a 10-pound dog, walking a mile doesn’t come close to meeting the needs of the dog. Then factor in that most dogs really want to run. They can run for miles. Few of us can meet that need.

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