Irresponsible dog owners let pets kill great blue heron in Arnold Arboretum

Surprised that they haven't publicly identified the dog's owner. Are they certain it was someone's dog and not a fox or coyote?

You will find signage posting dog rules everywhere with dog scofflaws ignoring them near at hand.

You have several flavors. Dumb lazy guys are reasonably common. I had one mutt try to eat my spinach pie as I sat having lunch up on the Wenham Canal. There are also high strung guys who yell commands at the things to seem more masculine.

In a way, this is slightly preferable to the slobbering baby talk middle aged crones favor. The crones are the absolute worst combining residual entitlement, bitterness and dog love hysteria.

https://youtu.be/A5IZobXdJyE

My theory on the bitterness is that the dog is a stand in for failed relations with someone, usually a man. It seems like an abstraction too, as many use these tennis ball tosser devices because they don't want to touce the mutt slobbered ball, even though it's beloved poochie.

They are basically so loathsome that I smile and thank my stars I'm not waking up to one.It's kind of infantile too.

Then you get the pro dog walkers who charge yuppies 60 to 90 bucks a mutt and run through places with up to seven of the things in tandem.

As much as I like canids and respect people with a clue about owning them, modern mutt pests are the epitome of the ugly american in our time.

Not trolling I promise, but whats the problem with a dog killing and eating a bird? Thats kinda how it works doesnt it? We are the ones that try to feed them dried crap pellets instead of raw meat.. Seriously whats wrong with a dog killing a bird?

Off-leash dogs are not allowed in any City of Boston park (except for designated dog run spaces).

http://m.cityofboston.gov/Parks/rules.asp

I'm pretty sure it was sick and dying already if it managed to get caught by domestic dogs. They're pretty common in the warmer parts of the US and they're rarely killed by dogs. Turkey vultures, crows and raccoons kill a ton of babies and eggs, and gators will eat them if they can. Cats also kill a lot of the babies since many of them nest in shallow water, but dogs are super noisy so the birds hear them coming and fly away. These birds are also pretty aggressive with their bills, and will fight back if forced to. If you're really worried about the flight of the Great Blue Heron you'd be way better off banning crows and raccoons from the park.

I've stopped walking in the Arb primarily due to dogs off-leash. I LOVE dogs; however, it's the owners' constantly shouting their names as I am trying to enjoy being outside with nature and exercising that really put me over the edge.

You know - they don't have to have the areas open for pedestrians, do they? Couldn't they close the gates at any time?

We are fortunate to have the Arb - we should all be good stewards - that includes dog owners. There are many who follow the rules - don't get me wrong. Would love to see that there's a spot in Roslindale for a dog park to allow for off-leash exercise - but the Arb isn't your dog park.

I've seen dog owners walk their dogs on and off leash through Mt. Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge where dogs are prohibited for obvious reasons if you have any sense of common decency. Dogs urinate on the graves and dog owners think nothing of it! We've also seen dogs go after birds and bark at cemetery visitors. People who walk in the cem. regularly always alert the groundskeeper who promptly kicks them out. Clueless dog owners' sense of entitlement is off the charts.

...I had no idea there was even a rule that they had to be leashed. The Arboretum has obviously been lax in enforcing this. As the other posters mentioned, it would be much more pleasant to walk in the arboretum if there were not so many dogs running around.

If only there were a group of people who were responsible for citing dog owners, some sort of...park ranger or animal control officer person perhaps? Oh wait they exist they just never give these entitled dog weirdos thecitations they deserve. Even the process is ludicrous since it requires a verbal warning be given first before a citation can be written. Surely they will remember all the verbal warnings. If you have a dog in boston and don't have the space for it then you are SOL, idc about your dog's aerobic needs or yall emotional bond. Keep your dumb dog leashed. I wonder if that heron is protected so the state or feds can get involved :)

Human beings have killed way more birds and animals than any of our dog species. Free roaming cats are estimated by the Audubon society to kill millions of birds every year.

on the natural death (via coyotes, or some other predator) of the heron to whip dog owners into shape.

If there are no witnesses to the attack, how are they sure that it was someone's dog or dogs? It could have been that the heron was attacked, killed, and the killer coyote was spooked by a biker or late night walker/runner, thus abandoning its prey.

Also, for people who are describing the arborteum as covered in dog s*** and who actively avoid it as a place to visit and as a running locale, are you kidding?

I run in there a few times a week usually on the Bussey Hill and Bussey Brook Meadow side, but also in the wild west of dog territory, Peter's Hill, and have seen plenty of off leash dogs, but more often than not, they are leashed. In traipsing around the arboretum I've never run into issues.

All this being said, if you are running and a poodle starts chasing you, start walking, or try to smack it. They are very prey driven and will get all up in your business.

I cherish our parks and am mostly responsible with my dog. I have problems with speeding bikes, and children who run up to my ferocious pet with no warning, hanging on the tree branches, and speeding down the hills on skate boards, or sleds. People leave the most trash or many bottles in which the regular dog walkers usually pick up. We all have are "pet" peeves. Do you all know you are not allowed to bring food and eat in the Arboretum (except for lilac Sunday)? Bicycles are not suppose to be on the non paved paths. Bicycles are not allowed at Millennium either (according to the signs). I am very upset about the heron. I love them. We, however, have enough to worry about than dogs off leash. Chill! I'm sure everybody on here complaining breaks the law in one way or the other. The park should be a place everyone can enjoy. It is the job of every one of us to be polite.

All this arguing is ridiculous. You live in Massachusetts. There is a leash law. Period. "When your dog is off your property, it must be on a leash."

I have two small dogs and we have stopped walking in many areas because of large "friendly" dogs chasing us and growling. There was a dog attack a few weeks ago in the corridor.

If you can't leash your dog you should not have a dog or you should move to the woods and be off leash as much as you like.