Family fun at the park with dogs

#parksforpets tweeters shared pictures of their favourite dogs

BritMums teamed up with the charity Blue Cross to throw the #parksforpets Twitter party, celebrating family fun with dogs in parks and open spaces.

Blue Cross is appealing to dog owners to lead the way in keeping open spaces both dog- and people-friendly for everyone to enjoy. Sadly, in some outdoor areas, dogs have already been banned due to unruly behaviour or owners not clearing up their dog’s mess. Yet dog owners, who use parks at all times of day and evening, can help prevent spaces becoming unsafe, and responsible owners can lead in the way in showing how having dogs in parks is a benefit for everyone who uses them.

Here’s what dog-owning and dog-loving social influencers had to say at the #ParksforPets Twitter party.

A family’s best friend

Our 16 month old loves to watch our dog play and has just started to throw the ball for her – cute! @TinBoxTraveller
J loves the dogs too much we had to attach the lead to the pushchair on long walks @mymummysworld
Walking the dog is definitely a family thing. I have so many great memories from doing it as a kid @TiredMummyofTwo
I walk mine everyday during the week as soon as I finish work hubby walks him Saturdays and Father in law on Sundays @dancer2712
Dog walking is a fab family activity! Great for teaching children about being responsible dog owners themselves to. @goriami

Advice on approaching dogs

I have taught my girls to ask the owners before approaching just in case @TiredMummyofTwo
I saw collars that had friendly, no other dogs or barks etc on them when we went to Crufts think its a good idea @TiredMummyofTwo
We invite children to come and meet Homily and stroke her or let bigger kids hold her for a cuddle @zoecorkhill
Closed hand back of bend down so as not to scare the dog ask permission first so that the owner supervises @kahargreaves

Poo strategies

I always clean up after my dog. There’s a sign on a house near me: ‘There is no such thing as the dog poo fairy’ @ali991
We always take bags with us to the park. A super cheap bag of nappy bags does the job and there is no need to buy pricey ones! @zoecorkhill
Dog owners – Costs £500 to place a dog bin for waste. Cut up free newspaper when u read it & put a square under your dog’s bum & bin paper @ChiffChaff19

Training your dog

We used clicker training with our dog when she was a pup. It worked wonders @TinBoxTraveller http://t.co/p4XB8BJ8xz
Out of all the gadgets and toys we bought our dog when she was a puppy, training was the best investment @TinBoxTraveller

Benefits of dog-walking

Dog walking is fab exercise for the kids & great way of teaching them responsibility #Parksforpets http://t.co/HvJ7CjL3aQ @MeTheManandtheBaby
I love how owners make friends then their dogs do too and have their favourite doggie friends to play with @jhowze
It is my think time. I talk to Ty and he never argues with me. @Juicysback
I love how so many people chat with you when you walk your dog @SebsMummy
I love to watch the dogs in the park. It can be very life-affirming to see them bounding around. @jhowze
I think dogs are magnets for meeting people! @AModernMother

What to take on a dog walk

If your dog is still a bit overexcited off-lead then take some treats to tempt them back if they run off @zoecorkhill
Definitely water and something they can drink out off #ParksforPets maybe some treats to reward good behaviours @TiredMummyofTwo
We had a collie who loved his kong toys on his walks but the lab has never been interested bless her! @goriami

We love our dogs

My Coco enjoying the shade! http://t.co/ZRy8cUASEB @SamLawson001
Here is Georgie and Homily at the park 🙂 they were running together http://t.co/bTGSypxl3N @zoecorkhill
Tin Box Dog loves caravanning – she gets to visit new places. Here she is in Ashdown Forest http://t.co/qPuH62gqOC @TinBoxTraveller

Resources from the Blue Cross

If anyone is concerned about recall or having their dog off-lead check out our training video: http://t.co/xokODn7TQg
If anyone wants advice on training or keeping your dog safe we have lots of factsheets on our website http://t.co/S9FlNRJP8h #parksforpets
Check out this map of dog-friendly parks and other resources for owners at @The_Blue_Cross http://t.co/Vs5LYH9vFO

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