Research

Observation

We went to the Frick park to observe how dog owners and dogs spend time in dog parks. The park is a off-leash area with a wooden table and a rule board at the corner. It was pretty empty but we were able to observe some people coming in later. We found some interesting facts from observation.


Dog owners socializing with other dog owners

  • Owners talked about dogs, complimented each others' dogs, and made general conversations.
  • There were two owners who remembered each other from previous conversations.

Dogs socializing with other dogs

  • The dogs liked playing ball games with dog owners, but they were mostly interested in playing with the other dogs.
  • Although the dogs generally got along with each other, there were occasional fights breaking out until the owners intervened. It was only one or two dogs that were really responsible for the fighting.

Dog owners’ concerns about their dogs

  • Owners appeared ok with other people playing with their dogs.
  • Dog owners were mostly worried about "bad matches." There was a dog owner who was telling his friend to keep an eye on a black dog that seemed to be a bad match with his.

Etiquette

  • They seemed to be experienced and well aware of dog park etiquette, such as supervising their dogs and following the park rules.
  • Some owners were very aware of what their dogs were doing and broke up fights quickly, others were not so aware, talking on cell phones or to other people.