Jasper’s Dog Park opened on Jan. 28, 2012 after many years of citizens rallying to get approval to build a dog park.

Kirkland’s first dog park was the direct result of a true community effort: Donations from individuals and local companies helped to pay for the expense of the park, including a significant grant from the Petco Foundation for the substantial initial ground-cover layer.

Park construction was a combined effort between Kirkland Parks and Community Services, and crews of dedicated

volunteers and leaders with the Kirkland Off Leash Dog Group (KDOG) worked doggedly from August to January digging out blackberries and carving out a new park from the hillside.

The existence of Jasper’s Dog Park owes much to its business sponsors: $3,000 and higher Platinum Paw level sponsors Weidner Apartment Homes, The Petco Foundation, Seattle Veterinary Specialists, Juanita Bay Veterinary Hospital; Gold Bone $1000 level sponsors Lee Johnson Auto Family, Puppy Manners, Eastside Veterinary Associates, NorthCreek Custom Fencing; Silver Bowl $500 level sponsors Denny’s Pet World, Animal Emergency Services-East, Dogs-a-Jammin’, Pawsome Dog Adventures & Pet Sitting, Matt Opsahl, Redmond-Kirkland Animal Hospital, Dooley’s Dog House, Ford of Kirkland and Hyundai of Kirkland, Darwin’s Natural Pet Products, Canine Behavior Center, Mystic Mountain Pet Retreat, Waste Management, Northwest Cellars, Brystal Whippets, Adaptive Animals; and Bronze Biscuit $250 sponsors Pet Vacations, Inc., Seattle DogSpot, Handy Andy the Handyman and Rusnak Photography.

During the dog park’s first year, the park served more than 30,000 visitors based on the outflow of at least twice as many waste bags. And the year has seen another important improvement: in December 2012, a new safer entryway was opened to the public – now visitors take a broad

path through park land and over a small bridge to access the park. This new entry was made possible by the generous financial support of Weidner Apartment Homes.

Jasper’s Dog Park is maintained with funding from KDOG, an all-volunteer organization that funds the park operations solely through fund raisers, individual donations and business sponsorships. Volunteers also help with ongoing maintenance operations at the park.

Anyone can join KDOG and become a part of the Kirkland off leash community. Find out how to join, donate or become a business sponsor at KDOG at www.kdog.org.