David Michael Miller
There are more than 270 city parks for people to enjoy in Madison. Dogs aren’t so lucky. By city ordinance, man’s best friend is banned from all but 30 city parks even when on a leash. Parks Superintendent Eric Knepp says Madison is more restrictive towards dogs than most urban park systems in the country.
“With the number of dogs growing in our community and the importance of dogs to individuals and families, I can’t say we’re currently a dog-friendly parks system,” says Knepp. “[In] the majority of the acreage in the parks system dogs are prohibited. But we are more dog-friendly than we used to be.”
Knepp says in Milwaukee, for example, the default is to allow dogs on-leash in parks. But historically, Madison hasn’t been as keen on canines.
“We have one parks employee who started with us in 1968,” says Knepp. “It was this way when he started. So from a policy standpoint, Madison starts with a more restrictive stance [towards dogs] than a lot of urban park systems.”
Knepp says local public health codes prohibit dogs on beaches. He also doesn’t see a day when dogs are allowed at city athletic fields, playgrounds or sensitive wildlife areas. But things are changing for four-legged park lovers.
Currently, Madison has eight off-leash, fenced dog parks and 26 parks where dogs are allowed as long as they are on-leash and stay on walking paths. Knepp says a decade ago there were just four dog parks in Madison— none of which were west of Quann Park near the Alliant Energy Center. In 2017, the Board of Park Commissioners and the Madison Common Council also expanded the number of parks where dogs can be on-leash from 12 to 26.
“It’s a balancing act. There are just some people who don’t like dogs or are afraid of dogs. There are cultural and historical issues at play here, too, that we need to be sensitive to,” Knepp says. “Ought there be parks free of dogs? So if someone has an aversion to dogs — even on-leash — they know there is a park they can go to? We’ve got to keep all that in mind.”
But Knepp says in recent decades dogs have been elevated from pets to full-fledged family members. As a result, park systems across the country have made it a priority to expand offerings for dogs and their humans. Knepp expects the Board of Park Commissioners to consider adding more off-leash dog parks in 2019 that would likely come online by 2021.
“I recognize that we’re out of balance currently. There are a lot of folks that don’t feel comfortable going to a park because they can’t bring their dog,” Knepp says. “We’re going to have some disagreements. That’s why we prefer to do things with a reasoned approach that encourages public input and engagement. Unfortunately, for some dog lovers that can feel awfully slow.”
Forget the park. Can I take Fido to brunch? Up until 2014, the answer was no. The state banned dogs from restaurants, even on outdoor patios.
Dogs are still prohibited — unless it’s a service dog or miniature horse — from being indoors in eateries. But new guidelines from the state allow Public Health Madison Dane County — which enforces public health code — to issue variances to restaurants to allow dogs on outdoor patios as long as they follow “strict criteria,” says Bonnie Koenig, the agency’s public health sanitarian. Dozens of restaurants in the county have been issued a variance since the rule change and compliance is enforced like any other public health code.
“The state completed studies that showed it was highly unlikely for dogs to contaminate food in an outdoor area with no food prep,” says Koenig. “We require a variance and establishments must follow a long list of rules so we can ensure that there aren’t concerns. The two we really focus on is the safety of patrons from aggressive dogs and the direct health concern if a dogs relieves itself in the area. This would obviously have to be dealt with immediately.”
So you may not be able to walk your dog in your neighborhood park. But, as long as there is an outdoor patio, enjoying a beer with your dog may be closer than you think.
