A “barking good time” can be had by dogs and owners at the Carmichael Canine Corral off-leash dog park.
It is well fenced, including a double-gated area for entry so any anxious four-footed “friends” could not easily get away. Most of the dogs run loose and are well behaved.
Dogs of all sizes can run free, chasing balls or other toys and get plenty of exercise in a large fenced-in area.
The dog park at Carmichael Park is located in the southeast corner. If you enter the park off Fair Oaks Boulevard, at 5750 Grant Ave..
Turning left at the end of the parking lot and follow the drive around, you will find the dog park on your left near the natural outdoor theater area.

bill@valcomnews.com

Dog parks are a hot commodity right now. According to an article in USA Today in December 2011, dog parks are the fastest growing segment of city parks in the United States – there were 569 dog parks in the 100 largest cities in 2010, a 34 percent increase over five years, where parks overall only increased by three percent. The article said this reflects changing demographics are there are now more households with dogs (43 million) than children (38 million).

One group looking to give Carmichael and surrounding area residents a great dog park experience is the Carmichael Canine Corral Association, which oversees the Canine Corral dog park at Carmichael Park. Open since 2000, the Canine Corral saw over 4,000 weekly visits by dogs in the spring of 2011, according to Elizabeth Susan Brown, president of the Carmichael Canine Corral Association.

“The Canine Corral is an off-leash dog park, which is a safe, pleasant, enjoyable place for dogs to run, play with other dogs, socialize with other dogs,” said Ellen Atwood, director of communications for the Carmichael Canine Corral Association. She said the Corral also lets dog owners socialize, both with other dogs and other humans.

No public money

According to Atwood, the Association in conjunction with the Carmichael Recreation & Park District administers the needs of the dog park.

“It is not funded by any county or state association or public money – all of the upkeep, the rakes, the poop bags, getting the leaves picked up and the trash bags, and so on and so forth is all done by volunteers,” she said. In addition to volunteers, those that utilize the Corral can become members of the Association for $20 a year to help fund the Corral. Atwood said a membership grants access to the members’ only section of the association’s Website, www.carmichaeldogpark.com, as well as additional information sent to members.

Now going on 12 years of use, Brown said the dog park is becoming a “bit shabby” from use and it is time for a major renewal.

“To renovate our dog park for the health, safety, and security of humans and dogs both, we need sewage, drains, fences, and grass watering systems,” Brown said. “Our improvement list also contains ponds for play, wash stations, electricity, lighting, walkways, and more.”

Atwood adds the renovation would also include much-needed amenities for humans in the small dog section of the Corral, including water, shade and seating. “A lot of our efforts are going to create not just a safe and healthy environment for the dogs, but also for the humans,” she said.

Two plans

The Association has two plans for the renovation – one is their dream dog park that Atwood said will cost $250,000. Atwood said the large cost comes from the improvements to the infrastructure, things like plumbing, grading, seeding, fencing and shade structures, that are important but carry a high price tag. “We know now right at this moment that we’re not able to reach that goal, so we have a down-scale version that will do just the absolute necessities and that is a total of $20,000 that we need by June 2012,” she adds.

How to get involved

In order to meet either of these goals, the Association needs to raise funds and they have been holding a number of fund raisers. For instance, in December dog owners could pay to have their pooch featured in a calendar that will be produced and sold to benefit the Corral. Atwood said the Association is currently selling bricks that can be personalized to memorialize an animal or human or just because. The bricks, which will be installed permanently at the dog park, cost $125 for a small brick and $250 for a larger brick.

Corporate sponsors sought

And the Association is also looking for corporate sponsors to help their cause. “We happily would change the name to reflect any company or person willing to fund a large part of our renovation budget,” Brown said.

As the Association works towards its goals, Atwood said it continues to be a place where owners can take their dogs for well-needed exercise, both dogs and owners can expand their relationships, and owners can use it as a source of education about pet behavior and training. “It’s kind of like parents at a preschool – they sit around and watch their kids play,” she said. “They’re pet parents sitting around watching their animals play and talk about things that are pertinent to animal behavior.”

Dog-gone fun

Thinking about taking your dog to a dog park for the first time? Michelle Dillon, owner of The Pet Agency –  offering home pet care and dog training in the Carmichael, Arden and Fair Oaks areas – offers these tips:

• Look for a dog park that is clean, well-maintained and has a good reputation. Dillon also suggests finding a dog park that has docents or people in charge that are there consistently “so they can intervene if there’s any scuffles that come up or behavioral issues between the dogs.”
• Look for a dog park that has a separate area for smaller dogs. “Let’s say you have a dog that weights 100 pounds, is very muscular and is excited to be playing,” Dillon said. “That dog may not be able to see a tiny dog and might run right over a tiny dog and could break its back and cause permanent injury.”
• Make sure your dog is well-socialized, has all its vaccinations, and you have an okay from your veterinarian.
• Owners should bring plenty of “poop bags,” sunglasses and a hat, but make sure to leave any food at home. “And no cigarettes – some people think smoking in dog parks is okay, but a lot of people get offended by that,” Dillon said.
• Have fun! “When someone really loves somebody, to watch that organism have the time of it’s life is a great joy – it increases a person’s mental health, it increases the dog’s mental health,” she said. “It’s a great place just to enjoy the outdoors.”

Come learn how to work better with your four-legged canine family members and bring a potluck dish to feed 10 to 12 hungry neighbors at the Second annual Carmichael Canine Corral Dog Park Fundraiser Potluck on Saturday, Jan. 21.

Regional trainer for Petco, Tom J. Lucido, will be the guest speaker. There will be a raffle and plenty of prizes. All funds raised at this event will go to the renovation of the Carmichael Dog Park.

The event will be held at the Carmichael Veterans’ Hall, corner of Fair Oaks and Grant Avenue in Carmichael, Jan. 21 from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. The event is $5 per person. Raffle tickets are $2 each or six tickets for $10. “Like” the Carmichael Canine Corral on Facebook. The group’s official website is www.CarmichaelDogPark.com. For additional information, email CarmichaelCanineCorral@yahoo.com.

Three public workshops during the next three months will allow the public to help shape the master plan for a dog park planned in Carmichael Park.

Workshops are scheduled from 6 p.m. until 8 p.m. Sept. 15, Oct. 12, and Nov. 16 at the Carmichael Park Clubhouse, 5750 Grant Ave. Participants will have the opportunity to help identify needs and suggest ideas for an improved dog park.

Carmichael Park District Administrative Analyst Lee Ann Yarber expects the dog park master plan to evolve during the course of the three workshops.

“During the September meeting, we basically want to gather preliminary data and identify the ‘grand plans’ that people want and need,” she said. “We expect to present a preliminary conceptual design in October and then to refine that design further for the final workshop in November.”

A new dog park would help address many of the issues faced by dogs and their owners who use the park in its current configuration, said Yarber.

“There are some drainage issues that we have to look at, and we lost a tree last winter, which means there is no shade out there,” she explained.

The park is in some ways a victim of its own popularity, with heavy use causing some facilities to wear out rapidly.

“It gets lots of use every day, and the lights out there allow its use past sunset,” Yarber said. “It’s definitely a high-use dog park.”

The amount of use the park receives has led to problems with the park’s landscaping, said Yarber.

“It’s covered with natural grass right now, and the dogs tend to tear up the grass and make things muddy, so we’re exploring some different turf options,” she said. “And dog waste disposal is always an issue, too.”

Along with considering the use of artificial turf of some sort, other features that may be considered during the workshops include a water play area and a walking trail.

“It’s a flat site right now, and we want to see if our park visitors are looking for ramps and other raised structures for their dogs to play on,” said Yarber. “We also want to see if people are interested in some sort of water feature or fountain. There is no pond built in, which means some people bring inflatable baby pools for their dogs to use.”

For more information about the workshops, contact Yarber at (916) 485-5322, extension 24, or LeeAnn@Carmichaelpark.com.

If you need a good laugh, or just some comic relief, you may not have to go as far as you think. The local characters at the new midtown dog park (on the edge of East Sacramento), located just north of 28th and B streets at Sutter’s Landing, has all the characters you’ll ever need for some doggone good times.

There’s all of the regulars: Raider – the digger; Finn – the runner; my dog, Coconut – the obsessed ball chaser; Murphy – the ball stealer; Stanley – the peacemaker; Dixie – the best buddy; Max – the grunter; and Talker – you guessed it – the talker. And this is just the tip of the iceberg as to the dazzling personalities you’ll find there on any given day.   

 

Friends of man’s best friend

When we met our new friend Dixie, a black standard poodle, we learned that she was the new face of Wag Hotels, a chain of high-class pet care facilities. With the help of her wonderful family, she’d just entered the contest on a whim, and won it. So when we would run into Dixie and her cool mom, Alison, they would tell us of the latest news on Dixie’s exciting social life. She’d be invited to the costume parties at Wag, or just spend a weekend there while her parents were gone and get spoiled.

“Wow, what a life,” Coconut and I would say telepathically to each other.

Dixie and Alison were our best friends at the dog park, but not too long ago, they moved to Oakland. (We hear it’s great there. We are hoping to get to go and visit them soon.)

Another pair of friends we recently made at the park, Jillian and Sookie, gave us a few pointers on some of the dog park’s other, lessknown uses. Jillian said she would bring guys to the park when she was single to see how the suiter interacted with dogs. If he was dog friendly (not just friendly to dogs but the dogs liked him, too), then he would pass the test. If not, well, you catch my drift.

 

Dog day afternoons

The Sutter’s Landing dog park is relatively new to the area. It opened on May 23, 2009 and boasts three acres of land, doggy drinking fountains, and a couple of shade umbrellas. The small dog and big dog play areas are separated, but share a common fence.

There is no grass, which the city chose to do to save money on watering. The park is built on top of the old city dump, and according to the plans (which were proudly displayed when the park opened), it was quite an engineering feat to ensure clean ground water for the dogs. The decomposed granite and recycled mulch groundcover, which makes up most of the dog park, seems to work out pretty well. Besides not having grass, the only other downside is the fact that the trees planted there are still very small, and in the summer, it can be unbearably hot, with no shade to speak of except from the umbrellas.

Nevertheless, the park can be fun for dogs and their human friends alike. Although the point of going to the dog park is definitely for the sake of your dog, it seems to be a nice opportunity for people to relax, too. There’s nothing else to do there except watch your dog romp around and have fun, so it serves as a nice way to decompress after a long day at work. We are often there at dusk, and it is a beautiful time of day there. The sun is setting, and the entire downtown skyline is visible. By Sacramento standards, it’s a pretty nice view. Ask any dog and their barks will tell you: “Life is good at the dog park.”

 

E-mail Jeneka Sanford at jeneka@valcomnews.com.