Dog owners, how many times has the following happened to you?

You're out for a walk with your pup at a county park and an unleashed, unfamiliar dog comes running up with a person behind calling out, "don't worry, he's friendly!"

Of course, regardless of the owner's insistence, your gut reaction is tense as you and your dog don't really know what the strange animal's intentions are.

It could be a friendly pup just looking for a playmate, or it could be territorial and not happy that you and your dog just crossed its path.

Most of the time, these interactions are benign and don't result in any problems, but "most of the time" isn't enough, and Monmouth County Park System officials are putting out the warning that they're not messing around when it comes to leash laws.

The complaints of dogs running off-leash at the various county parks have piled up enough that the department has put a warning out on their official Facebook page that park rangers can and will write tickets:

There are of course some great dog parks here at the Shore where pups are encouraged to run and play, but the folks at the Monmouth County Park System are considering this an official warning that letting your dog run off the leash outside of designated areas could cost you.

 

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