Picking one area on the beach for our dogs to roam and play is ridiculous – not everyone lives near the City Pier.  Yes, it is better than before when they weren’t allowed at all and the penalty was a $200 fine, but designating them to just one area is still a problem and needs a better solution.  Recently they’ve been given freedom to roam the beach access across from Pier Park, but I want to see all of our 27+ miles of beach open to our four-legged friends.

One argument may be that letting dogs on the beach will create a number of problems – from dog poop on the beach that’s not thrown away, to frightened or allergic beach-goers that may find the dogs to be a nuisance.  These are all petty excuses for not inviting all kinds to a public place.  For the dog poop issue, I’d argue that it is not hardly as hazardous as walking over all the the litter left behind or nearly as disgusting as a forgotten dirty diaper.  Dog owners aren’t the only ones slacking in the “get some cooth” department.  If this were the reason for keeping dogs off the beach, it is certainly a lame one.  We certainly couldn’t fine those bringing their babies to the beach or anything else that would cause litter.  There are trash cans for these problems and we can only leave it to the people to decide how clean its kept.

If our dogs are being kept off the beach due to protecting the few who might be afraid, then they should think about two things.  Remember the beach is long and wide – move away just as you would if you didn’t like crowds of people at the beach.  Or wait until the dog passes you – sure enough the dog is there to roam and play, not to stay in one spot, sunbathing on a towel.  Knowing a few dogs myself, they don’t usually stay too long and tend not to go the beach during the prime hours most others do.  I’ve found they like early morning or after sundown due to the heat.

So if your opposed to the idea of having our four fury-pawed friends put their paw prints in the sand, I suggest you change your mind or come up with a real reason they should remain off.

I’m grateful for the little beach access given, but I won’t be satisfied until they’re allowed the entire beach, until I don’t have to drive my dogs miles down to enjoy the beach side, or until I can use the beach access close to my house and walk my dogs over.