My vet is against dog parks

Just a word about vaccines -- don't expect your dog to not get kennel cough because it got the bortadella vac.  The bortadella vac is actually less effective for dogs than the flu vaccine is for humans.  The flu vax for us they try to incorporate the most recent strains of flu, but the dog vax is all old strains and typically doesn't do much (if anything) to vaccinate your dog against kennel cough.  It's a pacifying gesture that kennels, etc. can require but it doesn't do much.  But kennel cough is airborne -- your dog has as much chance of catching it from the dog next door in your yard (if neither of them ever set foot in the other's yard) as on a walk, or at a dog park.
 
And again with urine and fecal matter -- it isn't just stepping in dog poop because parasites remain in the grass long after the fecal matter has washed away (years and years sometimes) -- so whether you frequent a dog park or walk your dog, OR walk your dog in your own yard -- you still have to use something like Interceptor (dosed to attack hooks and whips in most dogs) or at least take your dog for a fecal every 4-6 months.  Again -- a dog with hookworms who ran thru your yard (or a squirrel with whips who left them under your tree or porch in its fecal matter) can spread those to your dog.
 
It's all a risk -- a lot of folks are germaphobic anyway, but it's not really a satisfying reason to not go to a dog park.  There may be other reasons you don't go, but unless your dog is very unhealthy (and some, like mine, are) then it may not be the primary issue you have with a dog park.

Enclosed dog parks are extremely stimulating for dogs and a lot of dogs can't handle this level of stimulation.

likw everything else, it depends on your particular dog, and the particular circumstances.
 
sparky loves to play with other dogs...if he didn't get off-leash run and a chance to play with other dogs ALMOST EVERY DAY (even twice a day), his life would be so comparatively empty.
 
with that said, i have found different dog parks and areas to have varying degrees of "acceptability"...so we try to stick to the places with the nicer people and the nicer dogs, or areas which are more secluded for off-leash fun...and have found individual dog friends in the neighborhood that he can play with.
 
there are all sortd of risks we take when we send our children to school, to college, to go out in life...we accept these risks because that is the way they can also have a good life...ditto for our dogs.

ahem. I don't want to offend anyone, because I'm sure my statement doesn't apply to YOU; certainly doesn't apply to ALL dog park visitors. But many of the people I meet at the dog park are well, lazy and not very responsible dog owners. Who are simply looking for an easy way to get the dog tired out. Go sit on a bench every evening and talk on their cell phone and ignore the dog for half an hour and then go home and lock the dog in a crate or the backyard. Thus they don't have to teach the dog to walk well on leash, don't have to actually exercise themselves, and don't have to interact with the dog.

I like our dog park for my dogs. Not all dogs are dog park material, and not all dog parks are great places. Before going to a new dog park, I'd always go and case the place myself, without the dogs. I'd go at a couple different times of day and just observe the people, observe the dogs, talk to a couple folks, walk the perimeter and inspect the fences (just to get a picture of how on top of the recall I need to be) and just get an idea of the vibe in general.
 
I'm also in a city, and our local dog parks are really pretty good. I've found the owners to be attentive to their dogs (to the point of sometimes micromanaging them which I feel sort of defeats the purpose) and people who have dogs that aren't doing well at the park take them away in pretty short order (after getting the cold shoulder from the other denizens). This is a very dog-oriented area and most of the people I talk to at the parks know more about dogs than I do. Is every single dog there vaxed? Probably not, but I'd be willing to wager that most are. I still get ooked out when I see people bring young puppies because I feel that while socialization for a pup is extremely important, there are safer ways to accomplish that. But for an adult dog with up to date vax and a good vet, I'd say the benefits for my dogs outweigh the risks.

I agree that some dog parks are great for some dogs...  Many are not great and certainly they are not for all dogs.  I really think it is about weighing pros and cons in each individual situation.  For us, city people without a big yard where we can have play dates,  dog parks are a must for a high energy dog who needs off leash time.  Additionally I am much more afraid of the effects of not continuously socializing Wesley, with people and dogs at the park than I am about a fight or illness.  We are weekday morning regulars (no evenings or weekends) and that tends to be the time where it is mostly the same dogs and people, with the occasional newcomer...  For us, and only us, I have made a call that in our park, the danger of a fight is not super high and people are pretty responsible - so we go every morning.  I really think it is a decision that needs to be made on an individual basis, since no two parks and no two dogs are alike... 

My mother goes to a dog park that is very well maintained, and has a membership with a coded gate so that all dogs have to be up-to-date with their shots to get the code.  They also have a collar tag that signifies membership.  I agree that there's a possible risk of catching something, but if you've watched any 20/20 specials lately you'll find that diseases and germs are everywhere.  (it was even on Oprah 2 days ago.)  As long as we keep ourselves, and our dogs healthy, there is no fool-proof way to avoid being exposed to something that can harm us.
As for my dog, she's not aggressive, but doesn't enjoy the company of other dogs.  I'm not sure she even realizes that she does fall into the category of "Dog."  My mom and I go for a walk at an area of the park where she can run around off a leash and then I put her in the car while my mom's dog runs around in the enclosed area with others for socialization.  People in the park will ask me why I don't bring her in...it's because it's stressful and unpleasant.  When she has been in a dog park she can't understand why we're there.  She hates other dogs chasing her ball, avoids all the herds of dogs that run up to her, and has a look of disgust in her face as she trots around trying to dodge any bit of grass that has once been "contaminated" with some other dogs urine or even remnants of picked up feces.
Just like a lot of things in life..excitement is often parralleled with risk of some sort.  Buying lottery tickets, riding horses, whitewater rafting, etc...The dog park's not for everyone, but sometimes having that great of a time and experience is worth the possible risk.

For me the benefits outweigh the risks, too.  Max's favorite thing to do at the dog park is to find a dog that likes to run as much as he does, and then they just race around the park together until they drop.  There's no way he could ever get that type of exercise on leash - unless I take up skate boarding or bike racing - which is highly unlikely. It's not too hard to keep an eye on him at our park because it's only a couple of acres. I know there are some parks that are much bigger than that - a city near us is putting in a 6 acre park which we'll probably try this winter when ours is under water. Most of us can't run as fast as our dogs can [] so losing sight of them now and then is to be expected IMO.

Joyce

Very good points everyone.

I think it would be a severe disappointment to Joey if I didn't take him to the dog park every weekend.  He even knows what "dog park" means.

I am more worried about aggressive dogs than diseases as well.  We don't go in the park if there too many dogs, especially big ones, which he gets intimidated by.  We usually go Sunday nights at dusk and usually no one is there.

And Mudpuppy, our weekends are planned around taking Joey places.  Yes, we go to the dog park every Sunday, but on Friday nights and Saturdays we usually take him to a pet store or another on leash park.  And we walk around the dog park with him.  We don't just sit there and watch, ever.  But I do agree that the Saturday dog park crowd usually just stand in the middle of the park and watch, but not everyone.

I have a friend who won't even bring her dog into a pet store or a park or anywhere because she doesn't think it's safe.  She has a very small back yard too.  That is a sad life for a dog in my opinion.[&o]

I wouldn't go to a dog park for lots of reasons. I give Trudy her exercise with walks and fun games. If that is a bubble, that is good. I also wash her feet and I take off my shoes when I come in the door. LOTS of nasty stuff out there on the ground, parking lots, streets, stores etc. I do not bring it into my house. 

For my dogs, although there isn't a dog park around, I don't think it would be a good thing. First, Millie does not like other dogs other than Max, and for Max, he's part pit,and while I don't really want to believe in excluding dogs based on breed, the truth of the matter is, if something broke out between him and say a, golden retriever, he would be blamed. Max is what one might call overly friendly. Other dogs, and in my neighborhood is does often seem to be golden retrievers, bark and growl at him like maniacs. He whines at these dogs and wants to play with them. When he wants to play, he has trouble taking no as an answer. With the right dog, or rather the wrong dog, the type that really doesn't want to play at all, this could escalate to fight level. Now, it's never happened because I don't let him pester the hell out of other dogs, which he would most likely gladly do in an off leash park, but I take him and we go find someone who does want to play. When he does play off leash, it's arranged with a dog and owner we know, or someone we meet and we go somewhere to take them off leash. Maybe for some dogs the dog park is a cool place, but I don't think it is for mine. 

We have 2 in my city, one that's 10 acres and one 6 acres. They both incorporate wooded areas with paths which is nice, a great opportunity to take Scout for an off-leash walk in the woods without worrying about her getting distracted and taking off somewhere.
 
We have just started going so I'm not sure yet what time and place I like best.... there's only one owner so far that I haven't really been impressed with... this lady with a lab that was playing REALLY rough. Which may not have been that bad if the dogs didn't mind, except that she kept running frantically towards him yelling his name, which leads me to believe that she doesn't trust his temperament. So don't bring him!!
 
Anyway Scout steers clear of these types so that makes it easy for me. Our park actually just fenced off a separate area for small dogs, so they can have fun too without getting run over by large dogs.

About 5 years ago a dog park opened in our area, and it was really nice, fully fenced so I didn#%92t have to worry about my dog running all the way to Montana.[sm=wink3.gif]  I took my dogs there to socialize as the puppy really needed to learn socialization skills and the other really enjoyed getting together with his new friends and running with the pack, and the nice people I met enticed me to go and socialize as well. As daily users to the new park we felt a responsibility to educate parents who didn#%92t realize they had to pick up after their dogs, but eventually the park became over-crowded and dirty; a result of too many dogs and not enough acreage, and too many irresponsible pet parents. Many people we met where uneducated in dog behavior and would constantly misunderstand playful behavior as aggression and all too often I#%92d witness someone leaving the park upset yelling at someone else. One doggie friend of ours did catch kennel cough. I didn#%92t realize it but a dog can contract certain strains of it even if they#%92ve had the Bordetello vaccine. Learn something new everyday. All-in-all it just became an unfriendly, dirty, unkempt park, and I had to stop taking the boys there. It#%92s too bad really that our city doesn#%92t have a better system in place for dog parks, because I think they are really beneficial to the dogs. A socialized dog is a happy dog IMO.

Below are a few photos of some happy well-socialized dogs. Two live together and the other is a friend.

My area doesn't have an official dog park, but there is a place that people take their dogs to run offleash at the risk of a ticket. ersonally, I wouldn't take my four to the park, but only because I know what type of people take their dogs there. I prefer to have control over what sort of strange dog experiences my dogs have. I don't want to have to pray to some benevolent diety of your choice that someone isn't going to bring an aggressive dog and therefore make for a bad experience.  Two of the four already have issues and I'd much rather not start the other two on some.  That's just me though.