Following stark criticism from residents and dog owners, the city of Toronto has officially removed a sign at St. Andrew’s Dog Park that originally told owners not to allow their dogs to bark.
Earlier today, there were reports of a sign at the downtown park near Spadina Avenue and Adelaide Street, which read, “ATTENTION: Due to the closeness of area residents, do not allow your dogs to bark and disturb the neighbourhood.Excessive barking will not be tolerated. Please be a responsible dog owner and follow all posted off-leash area rules.”
Word of the sign immediately spread and it wasn’t long until social media users had their hands all over it.
“My dog can’t read, don’t think this sign will stop him,” one Reddit user said.
“Part of being a responsible dog owner is allowing your dog to exercise and get their energy out (including barking) in a healthy way during reasonable hours. I understand if people are using the park in the middle of the night constantly but you live in a city. There are far noisier things like children, construction, emergency vehicles, etc. and you can’t stop those things,” another said.
On the other hand, a few users did agree with the sign.
“Ok, but I have a dog and often take her to our local dog park. There’s one dog that, no exaggeration, does not stop barking for 80% of the time the dog is there. The woman brings her dog every day, the dog barks incessantly, and she does nothing to even try to stop it… As a dog owner, it’s very annoying,” said a Reddit user.
According to the city, the sign was removed because it did not meet city standards.
“Although the sign was placed at this location with the intention of helping users of the off-leash area and neighbouring residents coexist harmoniously, we recognize that the information did not meet the mark. The City will be reviewing its sign approval process to ensure clear communication in future signs,” said the city in a statement sent to Now Toronto.
The city says it plans to work on balancing the needs of local communities and park users. At the end of the day, this particular move from the city barked up the wrong tree.
For more information about the city’s rules on off-leash dog parks, visit the City of Toronto’s website.
