[Mallory13]

My biggest concern about moving to TV in the future (we own a home but only get to visit it for vacations right now) is my Golden Retriever. Is there a place he can run? He can't go to dog parks because he's not "fixed". It doesn't look like there's many places to walk him. I am interested in what other owners of big dogs do.

[kittygilchrist]

I rise to the occasion to reply! See my photo for pic of Emma, my boxer. I take her in the car to places I have carefully selected for her to run free. It is an effort, and she is worth every moment.
I do not allow her to go in other residents yards, although most, I think, dog owners here do that with their dog on a lead. Much depends on exactly what terrain and property is near your home. Nothing but a culdesac, near us, is ok for her toilet on.
In order to allow her freedom to run and use her nose, not to be deprived of that great sensory input, I take her to:
A retention pond with fencing, where nobody has ever been there when we were.
A huge county park with trails, where few people or dogs go, and if there are other dogs, I put her on lead.
Golf courses under construction.
It is challenging, but doable.

I decline to share the location of these places, as the point of the post is to encourage you that you will find ways to honor your beloved pet, and so doing, to retain the solitude Emma and I enjoy.

[Polar Bear]

Originally Posted by kittygilchrist

...I do not allow her to go in other residents yards, although most, I think, dog owners here do that with their dog on a lead...

I respect you and your post, kitty. But I must express some mild disagreement with this one statement. There are certainly those who do that dastardly deed, but I wouldn't say "most". I think they are in the minority. (At least I hope so! )

We do most of the same things you do with our medium size dog. But sometimes we walk her in the neighborhood. We keep her on the street and/or sidewalk (temperature permitting of course) until we get to an appropriate place to let her do her business. Then we pick it up and go on our way. Of course picking up is an important part of the process, or it still wouldn't be appropriate.

[jane032657]

We have two large dogs each 75 pounds, an English Setter and a Gordon Setter. We pay $30 a month and take them to a private dog park called Doggie Doo Run off of 466. It has acres and acres of fenced area for the dogs to run. You put orange flags where the dogs poop and they clean it up. It is a fabulous park and the dogs are exhausted for the day after their morning run.

[DruannB]

Thanks for this post. This has also been on my mind. I think my 2 dogs will largely determine where I live, or I will at least try to live near a dog park.

[CFrance]

Originally Posted by jane032657

We have two large dogs each 75 pounds, an English Setter and a Gordon Setter. We pay $30 a month and take them to a private dog park called Doggie Doo Run off of 466. It has acres and acres of fenced area for the dogs to run. You put orange flags where the dogs poop and they clean it up. It is a fabulous park and the dogs are exhausted for the day after their morning run.

But you cannot go there unless your dog is neutered, and OP said her golden is not.

[drpepper]

We take our golden to the 125 acre field behind the Rio Grand pool. Lots of dogs. Most off leash. He loves it. We don't take him there in the summer though. Too hot. We walk him in our neighborhood early in the am.

[kittygilchrist]

Originally Posted by Polar Bear

I respect you and your post, kitty. But I must express some mild disagreement with this one statement. There are certainly those who do that dastardly deed, but I wouldn't say "most". I think they are in the minority. (At least I hope so! )

We do most of the same things you do with our medium size dog. But sometimes we walk her in the neighborhood. We keep her on the street and/or sidewalk (temperature permitting of course) until we get to an appropriate place to let her do her business. Then we pick it up and go on our way. Of course picking up is an important part of the process, or it still wouldn't be appropriate.

I hope your neighborhood differs from mine, where few observe the sanctity of neighboring properties. My comments come both from observing n eighbors and also from the poop posts on totv over two years duration.

Many think their dogs should absolutely always be allowed in neighboring yards. Many vehemenTly object to that, some sneak and try to deny where the dog went. My opinion is that, at least in my neighborhood, few dog owners have sufficient control to say where and when the dog may toilet.
I had a neighbor whose dog he habitually toileted in my yard and after his landscaping was done, posted a sign "no pooping" in his own yard.

[Polar Bear]

Originally Posted by kittygilchrist

I hope your neighborhood differs from mine, where few observe the sanctity of neighboring properties. My comments come both from observing n eighbors and also from the poop posts on totv over two years duration.



Many think their dogs should absolutely always be allowed in neighboring yards. Many vehemenTly object to that, some sneak and try to deny where the dog went. My opinion is that, at least in my neighborhood, few dog owners have sufficient control to say where and when the dog may toilet. I had a neighbor whose dog he habitually toileted in my yard and after his landscaping was done, posted a sign "no pooping" in his own yard.

Wow, thankfully (at least for me ) our neighborhoods appear to be very different. Actually, there aren't that many dogs in our immediate vicinity. But the owners in general are well behaved.

[Barefoot]

Originally Posted by Mallory13

My biggest concern about moving to TV in the future (we own a home but only get to visit it for vacations right now) is my Golden Retriever. Is there a place he can run? He can't go to dog parks because he's not "fixed". It doesn't look like there's many places to walk him. I am interested in what other owners of big dogs do.

We take our large dog to Doggie Doo Run Run, a private dog park, so he can run free and socialize on 10 acres.
But as CFrance said, dogs must be neutered to use DDRR as well as any of the Villages Dog Parks.
I have no idea where in The Villages you will find an area where your Golden can safely run off leash,
without encountering other residents or their dogs or even gators.
One place you are NOT permitted to walk your dog is on a golf course after it's closed for the night.

[Barefoot]

Originally Posted by kittygilchrist

I do not allow her to go in other residents yards, although most, I think, dog owners here do that with their dog on a lead.

I don't want to turn this from a dog park thread into a dog poop thread.
However I think the above information is very misleading.
Perhaps that happens in the poster's Village, but it certainly isn't acccepted standard practice throughout The Villages.
Dogs should never be permitted on private lawns, even if you pick up afterward.

[rubicon]

Originally Posted by Barefoot

We take our large dog to Doggie Doo Run Run, a private dog park, so he can run free and socialize on 10 acres.
But as CFrance said, dogs must be neutered to use DDRR as well as any of the Villages Dog Parks.
I have no idea where in The Villages you will find an area where your Golden can safely run off leash,
without encountering other residents or their dogs or even gators.
One place you are NOT permitted to walk your dog is on a golf course after it's closed for the night.

Hi Barefoot: As in anything/everything there are those who just don't care. I've seen some dog owners walk the courses early morning and some who find out of the way public locations to use so they don't have to pick up. Their facial expression are saying dog hurry up so we can get out of here undetected. fortunately most residents are very responsible and respectful

[john1953]

We have a 100 pound english lab.We are fortunate to live in a court yard villa.The back yard is good for him to run a bit.hes old 9+ years as from our vets orders to not let him run to often.It is bad for his bones that are starting to deteriorate.Hes a people dog and doesn`t do good around other dogs.He was attacked by a dog when he was 7 weeks old.That has stayed with him hence his dislike for other dogs.

[Greg Nelson]

Next to the ladies, dogs rule the world...men are down the list...it's not fair to a large dog to not let it run...We ran a spay/neuter clinic in Mexico for several years. Some of the Mayans did not want their male dogs turned into girls!

[CFrance]

Originally Posted by Barefoot

We take our large dog to Doggie Doo Run Run, a private dog park, so he can run free and socialize on 10 acres.
But as CFrance said, dogs must be neutered to use DDRR as well as any of the Villages Dog Parks.
I have no idea where in The Villages you will find an area where your Golden can safely run off leash,
without encountering other residents or their dogs or even gators.
One place you are NOT permitted to walk your dog is on a golf course after it's closed for the night.

I agree with this. Further, I would never let my golden off leash on trails in parks, or anywhere near water or construction sites or woods. Wild boar are in this area and could easily kill hi., And who knows what other kinds of things he could get into in the woods. Not to mention fleas, ticks, and other biting insects that are more prevalent in those spaces than they are in cleared dog park fields.

If OP's golden is anything like the two we've had, it most likely looooooooves to get into wild "stuff" and chase after small animals. It's just not safe, and having a good recall training on your dog may not work when their choice is coming back to you or going after, say, a bunny rabbit.