Columnist Susan Snyder: Getting the scoop on dog waste

Saturday, Feb. 3, 2001 | 10:58 a.m.

Susan Snyder's column appears Sundays, Tuesdays and Fridays. Reach her at snyder@lasvegassun.com or 259-4082.

And you thought soccer parents were bad.

Oh, don't call. It was a joke. This is a dog tale.

It seems people who show dogs and those who merely own them have actually come to blows over county dog park etiquette.

Clark County has four such parks, where people can take their dogs to run and play freely. When I was growing up we called this a "yard," and it came with our "house." But given the window box-size chunk of land that passes for a yard these days, middle-class canines need more space to do doggy stuff.

And you'd think 12 acres is enough. But pooch people who frequent Dog Fancier's Park on East Flamingo Road say even that's too cozy.

"Would you control your dog please?" an irritated woman said as she walked her dachshund one recent afternoon. Her remark was aimed at a woman oblivious to her romping yellow Labrador mix's propensity for pestering and pawing any moving thing in its path.

"People can get very hostile," said Julie Tate, who visits the park with Dakota, a basset hound. "There have been some nasty fights."

About what?

Well, poop. Some dog owners don't clean it up. Control is a problem, too. Leashes aren't required, but posted rules say dogs must be controlled at least by voice or hand commands.

"It's a people problem as well," said Jan Funk, who was exercising a Heinz 57 named Frankie. "And there's no punishment for not picking up what your dog does."

The county has 17 officers to police 50 parks, 365 days a year. That puts three on duty at a time, said Glenn Trowbridge, department director.

"We cannot have enough officers on duty to take care of personal responsibility," he said. "Don't call me to referee dogfights."

While it seems petty to pounce on a pooch that poops or nettles another, safety and health issues are at stake, said Terry Bounty, of Nevada Dog Fanciers Association. People don't know the temperaments or health records of canines roughhousing with their dogs.

And Dog Fanciers Park, where officials say most conflicts seem to arise, was set aside in 1967 as one predominantly for training show dogs. Bounty says 90 percent of regular users follow the rules and keep their dogs away from those training for shows. But that other 10 percent ...

"They figure they've paid their taxes, so the county can clean up the poop and their dogs can run everywhere," Bounty said. "There have been incidences of dogs being bit, people being bit and even dogs killed by other dogs."

Her group has met with parks officials to try to collar the conflicts. Dog club people proposed setting aside half the park as a reservations-only spot. Trowbridge has suggested dividing all the parks into sections that can be rented. Still other dog owners say to build more parks. Fewer crowds would quell many conflicts.

But Trowbridge says conflicts are certain to arise among people who own dogs for different reasons. And dog owners can be the most zealous of parents.

"It's the nature of the beast," he said. "When people are out there, their dog never makes a mistake. It's always your dog."

Soccer, anyone?