The new dog park is quite an improvement over the old one in Granite Park. I went there with my dog on Sunday and she loved it. There is a lot of room to run and the new swimming area is really great.

I question some of the landscaping choices, I suspect that the dogs will tear it up in no time.

Eric, I'd say it depends on your dog and the other dogs at the park - I don't like to generalize - Here are some rules I found for dog park etiquette:

1 )       Scoop the poop, reduce the risk of a bacterial breeding ground that dogs play in, and our neighbors walk through. Carry a bag when you’re out with your dog, and keep your dog off the neighbors’ property.

2 )       Obey the leash laws, keep your dog on leash until you have entered the play area, take off any training collars leaving only a well fitting buckle collar, and keep your leash with you.

3 )       Don’t allow dogs in the play area to ‘rush’ at the entrance way of a new dog entering the park; some dogs don’t like strangers in their face.

4 )       Absolutely NO aggressive dogs, un-socialized dogs, any dog with a ‘history’

      of fighting and biting, or uncontrollable barking.

5 )       Carry your dog’s rabies certificate with you, dogs can easily lose their tags while 

      playing with other dogs.

6 )       Do not wait until it is time to go home to call your dog. Call your dog and praise him for coming, then let him go play again. 

7 )       Don’t let your dog harass another dog, if you own a ‘bully’ type dog please look out for the ‘other’ guy.  Don’t ruin the play experience for another dog.

8 )       Be honest when assessing your dog’s ability to interact appropriately with dogs, and people, we depend on you knowing your dog very well.

9 )       Be willing to admit your dog is not ‘dog park’ material, you’re not alone.

10)   Know when your dog has had enough and leave the park on a happy note.  Like children dogs can get grouchy when tired or over-heated.

http://www.meritpuppy.com/doggy_park_etiquette.htm

That site also has great info on why recall training is especially important

I have a high energy mutt, I got her from the city shelter. She's probably a lab / site hound mix.

Eric, the dog park in West Sac has a big dog area and a small dog area if you want to start slowly. I've never seen any small dogs there, though.

You have to learn to control your dog somewhere. I think the dog park is really good for training your dog when there are distractions.

As my friend says, "You can't train your dog to be tolerant of marching bands in your living room."

I myself along with my husband are considering getting a pet and I know that I will have to bring her or him to more than just the front yard or back yard. I don't know much about dog parks, But is it really all that people say that it is? Do any of you ever become concerned about other dogs that may attack yours? Are you comfortable having possibly your kids in the park with so many other dogs you don't know? I guess from my questions you can tell I have never been to one before.

cool, I didn't know this exist.

I guess I would have to go and visit this park. It is nice to know that our state capital is using money to fund on public uses instead of all the other junk from our taxes. It has a werid name to it though, but I guess it has to be unique in some sort of way.