With the recent success of the Kirkland Dog Off-leash Group (K-DOG) in gaining approval for the first off-leash dog park in Kirkland, we should also consider the safety of dogs and their owners who will eventually be using the space!

Here are some tips for keeping the play safe at all times:

• Have conversations regarding your pet’s behavior with the other pet owners present. Invite dialogue to learn if their dog has any aggressive tendencies and when they occur, then make efforts to avoid those circumstances.

• Remember that smaller dogs are easily overwhelmed when a larger dog simply wants to play. Injuries can occur for no other reason than incidental contact. A large and loping Great Dane can easily fall onto or trip on a smaller dog with no evil intent whatsoever.

• Be aware of unsafe canine postures: stiffness of body, paws on top of other dogs to establish dominance, dogs looking other dogs or humans directly in the eyes with stiffness, and lunging and poking with hackles up. Be mindful that a wagging tail is not always a positive sign; it simply means “I wish to engage,” but can also be a sign of aggression.

• Healthy play involves a lot of low “play bows” and involves dogs who are evenly matched, and looks more like a dance. It may include some mouthing and vocalization. Safe play is best limited to two dogs – a third dog in a play situation can quickly escalate to a dangerous situation, so interrupt “third man in” play immediately, keeping the two original participants active while removing the third dog completely from the game.

The nature of a dog’s brain means that any dog, given certain circumstances, can snap and bite, even if the biting dog has never shown such tendencies before. It merely means that a state of arousal has been reached and the dog is reacting from instinct, driven by hormonal influence, and can no longer be controlled by their human companion.

If it is clear that a dog is over-aroused and no longer under the control of its owner, stay well clear of the situation. That dog must be separated from the other dogs as quickly as possible for a minimum of 30 minutes. (This time is critical to allow the hormones that are driving the behavior to be re-absorbed into the dog’s system, prior to re-introducing him to the pack.)

Off-leash dog parks are gaining more and more in popularity, and while they offer a great opportunity for owners and their dogs to bond and play, users must be mindful that the responsibility for safety lies in each user of the park.

Contributor, Stina Hughes, is co-owner of Scampers Daycamp for Dogs, a newly-opened doggie day care facility on 124th Street in Totem Lake. She and her partner, Linda Olsen along with Eric Olsgaard work with dog packs daily – striving for safety in multiple dog play at all times. She can be reached at stina@scampersdogs.com for more information. Or, you can call her at 425-821-9100.