Dog Walkers please pick up!
Many dog walkers will be joining in the “Walkies” event at St Francis Links in Aid of SPCA and organised by the “Open your Eyes – Sterilize” this morning enjoying time with their ‘best friend’ and allowing the pooches to also enjoy a little festive season socialising. Each walker is supplied with a doggie poop bag at the start of the walk and they are required to pick up after their dogs on the walk. So as thousands of holiday makers descend on our beaches we again confront the problem of dog walkers and appeal to them to follow suit and take a doggie poop bag with them and pick up after their dogs. The beaches are not a massive “Doggie Litter Box” and an appeal has gone out for all dog walkers to please co-operate, not only on the beaches, but also on the sidewalks in the villages and trails through the nature reserves.
Below is a letter from St Francis Bay Golf Club banning dog walkers from walking on the golf course due to a few inconsiderate dog walkers not abiding by calls to pick up thus spoiling it for those who are respectful of the golf course and the golfers who play on it. No one wants to see dogs banned from our beaches so please ask your friends or family who have brought their family pooch on holiday with them to please respect our beaches and beachgoers and those who enjoy hiking though our beautiful nature areas.
St Francis Bay Golf Club
Walking of Dogs on the Course
With immediate effect we will no longer allow any dogs on the golf course. This will be strictly enforced and owners of dogs are asked to comply.
The Golf Club has for a long time made every efforts to get the owners of dogs who walk them on the golf course, to assist us with cleaning up after their dogs and also to stop their dogs from chasing the birds on the course and also running over greens and through sand bunkers causing damage.
Some of the owners have really tried and have been excellent in assisting us.
We have however had some people who have not and have allowed their dogs to run freely and to cause our golf course to be void of any Crowned Lapwings (Plovers). This course once had breeding pairs all over and little red flags were placed next to nests to warn the course workers and golfers. Dogs are seen regularly chasing birds with the owners doing absolutely nothing to stop this. The logo of the Golf Club is the Blacksmith Lapwing (Plover) and even these birds have been seen to have to take refuge in the dams when chased by dogs. Even the smaller ground birds have been chased away totally.
After serious consideration of all the facts and knowing that some dog owners have “kept to the rules”, the Committee of the Golf Club has decided to prohibit the walking of dogs with immediate effect. Signs are being made and will be put up in all the strategic places and we ask all dog owners to comply with this decision.
The Chairman & Committee – St Francis Bay Golf Club
Ts a pity that it has come to this but i guess there are quite a few people who think rules don’t apply to them and no doubt we will see some good examples of total disregard for both rules and the law over the festive season. I feel sorry for the people who complied and tried but i have sympathy for the golf course and its members who did appeal for some respect and consideration.
Perhaps a system of naming and shaming people should be introduced and in more serious cases things should be reported to the appropriate officials. Already there is non compliance with the no wake speed requirement in the canals and strangely it is primarily from Jet ski riders but there are also some boats not complying
Hi Ian, Thanks for the piece regarding the adherance to rules and the possible naming and shaming of those who do not conform. Unfortunately the Golf Club just do not have the necessary staff to be able to be at the various places where people walk their dogs to see that they do conform.
Unfortunately some of the “dog-walkers” also get somewhat abusive and we are not willing to expose our staff to that. For that reason we have just decided to totally prohibit the walking of dogs on the Golf Course. Anyone who continues to do so will be reported for trespassing.
We are sure that our birding people would confirm the loss of so many birds on the Golf Course due to free-running dogs and the owners having no regard for the bird-life on the course when their dogs continuously chase the birds.
We are sorry for those that did their best to be “good citizens” but had no alternative.