New ‘dog zones’ are set to be introduced at Gedling Country Park in a bid to help make the park accessible to all.
Gedling Borough Council is to introduce the three zones; red, yellow and green at the 240 acre country park.
The red zones will be where dogs are not allowed to enter, the yellow zones will ask owners to keep dogs on leads and the green areas are where dogs can be let off leads but must be kept under control.
The zones are being introduced to improve safety around the park most notably the children’s play area, visitor centre and car park, as well as protecting livestock and wildlife in the park enclosure.
The zones also stop owners from allowing their animals to swim in the lagoons, which can cause harm to wildfowl such as swans, which is an offence under the Wildlife and Countryside Act.
The plans will be presented to residents through the official Gedling Country Park Facebook page and the Friends of Gedling Country Park group for feedback.
The park receives hundreds of visitors every month, many with dogs. The proposed zones will make sure that visitors are aware when dogs should be on leads and where they can be exercised off lead but still under control.
The green zones, where dogs can be let off their leads, accounts for a large part of the former colliery land and provides acres of natural habitat for dogs to enjoy, without damaging the ecology of the park.
The zones were introduced after incidents in the park of dogs attacking the livestock and complaints of dogs not being kept under control in the park near the children’s play area.
Councillor Michael Payne, Deputy Leader of Gedling Borough Council said: “We’re introducing these zones so that everyone who comes to the park can enjoy its fantastic views, walks and café with or without animals.
“Most visitors control their dogs exceptionally well but we have had incidents where dogs have been entering livestock enclosures, damaged the ecology and causing concerns around the play area and visitor centre, which we cannot allow.
“The zones will provide visitors with clear guidance that will improve their experience and remove any uncertainties about how users should control their pets within the park. We welcome any feedback on these proposals and we think many people will find the changes an improvement to what is already, a great destination park.”
If you read this like I did at first, you may think they are not allowed on the path near the red area. But they are allowed on the path but not in the field where the red area is, but this is fenced off anyway.
I’d rather drive out and take my dog where she can roam free on a dog paw friendly surface, not being surrounded by fencing for cattle ( it’s a country park, not a cattle farm) and where she can have a swim to cool off in the hotter days. I regularly took my dog to the pit filter beds ( now called the lagoons) for a cooling dip but shes had her nose pushed out as the wildfowl proliferated and took over so she’s booted off and banned. She was there first but now plays second fiddle. It’s fast becoming a country park that’s certainly rapidly becoming dog unfriendly with the Council’s anti dog decisions. Some I can concur, like around the children’s area obviously. But it seems it’s fast becoming knee jerk no dog here, no dog there, no dog anywhere! There’s a massive swaythe of sun farm which produces about as much electric as a Duracell . You show this as green area but it’s got a bloody great fence around it. The cattle areas account for nearly half of the park. What’s with all the cattle? Am I missing something here? It’s a country park, it’s NOT a farm! Is it for meat, milk or just so as you don’t have to cut the grass? GBC, your fast becoming anti-dogs at this COUNTRY park.That’s what it’s looking like!
My children are fearful of dogs so this is great for us and so it should be where children are concerned. However, every time i go to the park or the cafe, there are always dogs off their leads. Owners do not care. Yesterday in the space of 30minutes, 4 dogs came through with no lead. Cameras need to be put up. Penalties given