Chesterfield seeks to keep dog park safe

Roughhousing may have gone a little too far at the Ruff House Dog Park in Rockwood Park.

It's not the dogs that are causing a problem. It's the people who aren't following the rules to keep young children out of the enclosure.

To help keep things under control, Chesterfield County is asking for more volunteers to join the Ruff House Dog Park committee.

Dogs can run free at Ruff House Dog Park inside two fenced-in areas that measure about 100 feet by 75 feet. On weekends, as many as 30 or 40 dogs may be running around, creating an unsafe situation for young children. That's why the rules say no children younger than 10 are allowed inside.

The county has gotten complaints from dog owners concerned about the situation.

"Once, in the middle of the dogs, the kids started running excited in all directions screaming with pleasure, picking the tennis balls and frisbees from the ground and running away with them," said one e-mail sent to the county. "For more than 30 minutes I have not witnessed any visible/audible effort from the adult to restrain and caution them. . . .

"And, sure enough, one of the kids, running away with a frisbee just dropped by a dog, ended up with a scratch on his back from the dog who was trying to recapture his toy."

Mark Pinney, recreation specialist with Chesterfield Parks and Recreation, said he also had seen problems when he went to observe.

"We don't want anybody to get hurt," he said. "When you have babies in strollers inside a pen with dogs, there's no way to control what happens. . . . I have witnessed that on several occasions."

Pinney wants more volunteers to help ward off problems. The committee has 21 members now.

"The more volunteers, the more ownership [of the dog park]. For us, it's a plus."

Volunteers might take turns patrolling the park at busy times to enforce the rules.

"Other people in the area are happy that the park is there," Pinney said. "We want to make sure it's a safe place."
Contact Katherine Calos at (804) 649-6433 or .