Dog parks officially open on North and South Town Sites

By Patricia Leboeuf | May 9, 2019 | Local
Several soldiers in camo uniforms, two people wear civilian clothes, several dogs on leashes stand in front of fence
The dog parks at Garrison Petawawa are officially open. There is an off-leash park in the South Side as well as the North Side. On April 29, a grand opening of the North Side Dog Park was held. Attending from left are Vicky McMahon with Belle and Zoe, Private Bethany Koster with Bear, Garrison Petawawa Chief Warrant Officer CWO Tom Verner, Acting Garrison Petawawa Commander Lieutenant-Colonel Joe Hartson, 4th Canadian Division Support Base Petawawa Personnel Services (4 CDSB Petawawa Pers Svcs) Regimental Sergeant Major Master Warrant Officer Kim Pyke, 4 CDSB Petawawa Pers Svcs Commanding Officer Lieutenant-Colonel Darcy Wright, Master Corporal Claudine Nany Da Silva with Austin, and Randall Hogendoorn with Lucy, Sniper and Asha. (Photo by Patricia Leboeuf, Petawawa Post)

Dog owners at Garrison Petawawa can rejoice as the dog parks on both the North and South Sides are officially open.

Though dogs and their pet parents have been using the parks for the past four months, it wasn’t until April 29 that they were officially opened by Acting Garrison Petawawa Commander Lieutenant-Colonel (LCol) Joe Hartson and 4th Canadian Division Support Base Petawawa Personnel Services (4 CDSB Petawawa Pers Svcs) Commanding Officer Lieutenant-Colonel (LCol) Darcy Wright and their teams.

“I love it,” said LCol Hartson. “I love off-leash dog parks. My dog Jake loves coming to these and running around.

“So anything we can do to improve the quality of life for an important member of the family, the pet, is good for the community.”

Basic fencing is up, and the North Side park has two areas, one for small dogs and one for dogs over 15 lbs. This will allow for a more harmonious playtime for dogs of all sizes. There will be more safety fencing to make coming in and leaving simpler, and play structures and obstacle courses will also be installed at a later date.

Creating the dog parks answered a deep community need as many members and their families own dogs.

“We want to make it a better place to live and a better community because animals make our lives better, they enrich our lives and they are part of our military community as well,” said LCol Wright.

Feedback has been very positive. People are thrilled to have a place nearby to let their dogs play freely.

“We wanted to to do this little bit to improve the quality of life for our families,” added LCol Hartson.

The North Side Dog Park is at the corner of Ypres Boulevard and Regalbuto Avenue and the South Side Dog Park is located on Borden Avenue.