Confusing dog leash zones

QUITE clearly the mixture of dog on and off leash areas at a suburban park is failing.

Goomboora Park at Brinsmead has become a veritable battleground between dog, non-dog owners and council officers as confusion reigns over the areas where dogs can run free while other parts of the park the canines must be on a leash.

To make matters even more of a shambles are the rules over creek areas.

Some dog owners have been threatened with fines for not having their pets on leads in the adjoining Freshwater Creek.

But the council has no jurisdiction over the waterway and cannot issue fines or even warn dog owners over the animals in the water.

Owners are worried that having dogs on leashes in the creek can lead to entanglement and even drowning.

A petition with more than 500 signatures is calling on Cairns Regional Council to call off a crackdown.

A council spokeswoman acknowledges that the officers have no power in the creek and has denied that there have been any threats of fines.

The problem is the mixture of zones and the conflict between dogs and other users, particularly children. It really needs to be all or nothing. Could another park nearby, such as Glenoma Park where dogs are currently not permitted, become the suburb’s dog off-leash zone?

This would stop the confusion and conflict, leaving Goomboora for people and Glenoma for dogs and their owners.

Then again dog owners could choose from 46 dedicated dog offlease areas, including near Goomboora, in the Cairns region. Nick Dalton nick.dalton@news.com.au