Citizen complaint of the day: What's a large working-breed dog gotta do in this town to run around?

A disgruntled citizen with a large German Shepherd mix files a 311 complaint and a plea about the warning she got at Healy Field on Washington Street in Roslindale:

Recently, I took my dog to the Healy Field, so she could run around and let off some energy. My dog is a large German Shepherd Mix and since her breed is a working dog, she needs an area where she can run around a bit.

We’ve been going there for a few years now and prior to having her, I’ve seen dog owners take their pets to the park as well in the same manner. The dog owners and their pets are always respectful and kind, and it is common knowledge that when the children are playing (baseball games, etc.) they take priority; we always try to go on “off hour” so that we don’t interfere with the children.

As I was playing with my dog, an animal control officer came and gave me a cited warning in regards to having my dog off-leash. He told me that they are now enforcing a no off-leash policy for the dogs in the area. To say that I’m not annoyed with the warning, I would be lying, and I can understand the need to separate fields where people play vs where dogs play. However, there are no other areas near me where I can let my dog play safely. I live in Roslindale and the nearest dog park if searched on the internet is either in downtown Boston or in Dedham, which means I will have to drive for miles just to exercise my dog with no guarantee that I will have a parking space, or have the choice to take the MBTA, which is not reliable at the moment and quite honestly a hassle. Yes, I have noticed Mt. Hope Dog Park, but my dog is a large dog and that plot of land isn’t even enough for her to turn around and do her business, let alone to give her room to run.

If the city is enforcing these laws for dog owners, there should: 1) Be an announcement: Again these laws haven’t been effective in years and I’ve been living in this area for over a decade and I haven’t seen or heard of this happening. Just as the animal control services send out mail to license pets annually, they should’ve also sent out a courtesy mail or email about the city reenforcing these laws. 2) Direct owners to areas where they can take their dogs to play: The Animal Control Officer, although he was nice and respectful, just gave me a spiel about why they were giving out warnings, but did not give me a solution to the problem and that was not helpful at all. If they are going to issue warnings, then they should also have a pamphlet at hand to give to dog owners with more helpful information. 3) Provide safe spaces for dog owners in the neighborhoods to take their dogs off-leash: I don’t think it’s fair for the city to enforce these laws, but don’t have safe spaces to provide dog owners and their pets.

The very limited parks are near the busy streets and aren’t fenced - God forbids a puppy who’s in training runs into the middle of traffic! Again safe spaces for dogs of all types - large and small. Especially in the Roslindale area! Again, I do understand about sharing space with people and dogs and the health factors that are involved, but dogs’ health are important, too. I want my dog to live a long life and to do so, she needs exercise. Walks are great, but again, as a large working breed, she needs to run every so often and I can’t do that if I don’t have a safe or large enough space for her to do so. I understand that you might have many other dilemmas that you need to attend to, but I hope this message does reach the necessary person/people, and I really do hope that they take this issue to heart.

Paragraph breaks added by ye editor to increase readability.