One More Off-Leash Question-Baseball Field?

[Guest roweboy]

Yesterday was 4 months since we picked up our boy CJ from his prison training program. He is amazing - the best behaved dog I've ever had and totally attached to us (and we to him!!) I can't say enough good things about him. However, I've never really had him off leash to practice recall.

 

We just had our entire back yard re-done and that includes new sod. It's a pretty big yard where he was able to run freely when it was a mess. Now we have to try to keep him off the grass until the sod gets established, so we've been taking him for more walks.

 

I'd like to find someplace he can run on grass and it was suggested to take him to a kids' baseball field which is totally fenced. I don't really like the dog parks, where he won't run anyway and I'm afraid of the other dogs hurting him.

 

Does anyone use this kind of place for free-running? My son used to play ball and I think I've been to every field in a 3 state radius.

[a_daerr]

In our area, the ball fields are mostly owned and maintained by the city or township. They all have signs that say "NO DOGS"

If you can find one that allows dogs, though, have at it. You may have to bring some type of barrier or snow fencing if the exits aren't completely fenced.

[ramonaghan]

Yes, we have done this regularly with Sweep in the year and a half we've had her. I love it. As soon as that leash comes off, she knows exactly what she's there for and is happy happy happy. We moved into a house with a small fenced yard a couple of months ago, but we still try to get to the ball field when possible because it's so much bigger and has fewer obstacles. We are lucky to have found one at a park about 10 minutes away that is surrounded completely by an 8-foot fence and does not have any No Dogs signs. (Obviously we always clean up after ourselves, but generally speaking, we're only in there for 5–10 minutes anyway so no one's ever given us any trouble.) I would advise a brisk walk or jog beforehand to warm CJ up (and a short cooldown walk after); Sweep's been a little wobbly or even limpy on occasions when we haven't done so.

 

Glad things are going so well!

[Dawnnziggy]

Our baseball field says no dogs but after the season is over, we are free to use it. There are just so many irresponsible people who do not clean up after their pets that they don't let you do it during the season.

[BatterseaBrindl]

We go to a city-owned ball diamond.

There are no signs prohibiting dogs. If there were signs, we would not go.

 

Two members of our little group live in the city (I don't!) and it is a public area and they pay their taxes, so we really can't see how they can stop us from using it.

We always pick up after ourselves and have even been known to pick up trash left by littering ball-game spectators!

 

It has four openings that we close off using orange plastic construction/snow fencing. We're there only once a week for less than an hour.

There is a city-owned DayCare on the same property - we use their parking lot - and they seem fine with us being there.

Edited June 24, 2014 by BatterseaBrindl

[GeorgeofNE]

Yes, I have, and my dog had zero interest in doing anything but sniffing every post on the fence and peeing on it!

 

I went at 6 AM. Signs be darned! I cleaned up after him, and I am sure no one ever knew he'd been there. But after doing this a few times, I realized his "need to run" was only in my head. He gets plenty of exercise on our walks, and without another Grey to compete with, it's just not a big deal--running that is.

[BatterseaBrindl]

Yes, I have, and my dog had zero interest in doing anything but sniffing every post on the fence and peeing on it!

 

I went at 6 AM. Signs be darned! I cleaned up after him, and I am sure no one ever knew he'd been there. But after doing this a few times, I realized his "need to run" was only in my head. He gets plenty of exercise on our walks, and without another Grey to compete with, it's just not a big deal--running that is.

 

Have to agree with George that one Greyhound alone will usually not run.

I wouldn't even just take my 3 to the diamond...all they would do it sniff and pee.

However...add in a different hound - or two - and they really do enjoy a good race or two around the field.

Then it's back to sniff and pee.

[Guest fueldeacon]

This is our dogs favorite place to run, usally if it during season we keep her off the fields or find a field which is seldom used. Again we bring stuff to block openings in the fence. After she is done I will go and replace her divits if she ran on the infield or if they have the chain link fence you can drag I will drag the field.

[christinepi]

Tracker never showed interest in running by himself, either, nor with other dogs. But then I figured out, entirely coincidentally, what WILL make him run: a short bully stick, or anything edible and toss-able. He'll take off after the item, pick it up, and start going bananas. Zooming for two to three loops, then dropping the treat because if he doesn't open his mouth enough he can't suck in enough air, so he zooms some more, until he wants to eat the treat and gosh darn it where is it?! He has really good memory of the general area where he's dropped it, so he sniffs around frantically until he finds it, and then lopes off to plop down and eat it. In the meantime, I keep walking away from him. By the time he's eaten the treat, there's some distance between us, and he comes barreling towards me because he knows there's more. Same thing repeats, and then again, until his thigh muscles tremble! A sight to behold.