San Francisco is something of a utopia for people who want to pamper their pooches — which supposedly outnumber children in the city — with life’s finest luxuries.
But an increasingly vocal group of locals say the city is overrun by entitled dog owners who give their pets free rein of public spaces.
These critics insist they’re not “dog haters” — many say they actually love the city’s four-legged denizens. But they make an impassioned case for banning pets from public parks.
They say grass at their local esplanades has been ruined by dog urine and holes burrowed in the ground. They contend that many dogs show little respect for personal space — something their owners seem oblivious to. And they reason that it’s difficult to find places for kids to play that aren’t desecrated by dog piss.
“Our parks are not dog bathrooms,” North Beach resident Matt Talbot said. “They come in with the big headphones, the sunglasses, the dog. Why did you move to the city in the first place? Take your dog to the suburbs.”
The city has 36 designated dog parks for owners to let their pups roam free, according to the San Francisco Recreation and Parks Department. But leashes are required at all other parks.
Talbot said patches of grass at his local park in Washington Square died from too much dog urine shortly after a 2019 renovation. He said he has nothing against dogs, but he wants to see the city install designated dog runs at every park and enforce leash laws elsewhere.
“This is kind of like a free-for-all — some people pick up the shit; some people don’t,” Talbot said. “There’s a simple solution: Make dog runs in every park.”
Kevin Robinson, who lives in North Beach, said San Francisco should fine dog owners who don’t abide by city rules. As the dog population has grown, he contends, the rights of humans have taken a backseat.
“Once in a while, you get somebody who feels entitled, and that’s mushroomed over time. People think they can do whatever they want with impunity,” Robinson said, describing dogs trampling over picnics. “It’s ridiculous — you can’t bring your dog everywhere. You see dogs in strollers. My goodness, they’re not babies. I love animals, but there’s a time and a place.”
Robinson said he used to take his son to Joe DiMaggio Playground but repeatedly found it teeming with dogs relieving themselves on the artificial grass. He said some dog owners have become hostile when he’s asked them to leave.
“How are you going to clean up urine?” Robinson asked. “It always feels like it’s animals first, and families and kids second.”
Trouble in paw-radise
In Potrero Hill, neighbors formed competing petitions to lobby the city for access to Jackson Park, which is zoned as an athletic field — meaning no dogs allowed.
On one side of the battle are local sports leagues, whose members say dogs tear up the grass and dig dangerous holes. In at least one case, a hole led to a broken wrist, according to Michael Daniels, captain of an adult softball team called the Grass Stains. He said owners sometimes let their dogs meander into the outfield during games, and more than once his teammates have stepped in poop.
Daniels, who owns a German shepherd named Daisy, argues that owners should go to the nearest dog run, which is a 13-minute walk from Jackson Park, according to Google Maps.
“These [dog owners] here, they want to live a suburban life in an urban setting,” Daniels said. “They want to step outside their house and just let their dogs loose. They don’t want to walk them.”
Owners argue they should be allowed to walk their dogs in the park when nobody else is around. Some say they can’t walk to other parks because of their busy schedules, or in some cases, due to a disability. They view the city’s attempts to keep them off the field as militaristic and said they have at times turned violent.
Paul Sears, who started a petition to rezone Jackson Park to allow dogs, said he agrees that owners who don’t clean up after their pets should be penalized. But, he said, those people represent a small portion of the population.
“To stereotype and say, ‘Well, because some dog owners are irresponsible, therefore all dog owners are irresponsible’ — that’s just a stereotype,” Sears said. “If that same line of thought was directed toward other populations, I think a lot of people would be really upset.”
Sears said he’s open to meeting with the canine-critical opposition and the city to hammer out a compromise. The city plans to renovate the park to add a dog run, but Sears and others say they don’t want to wait until the project’s completion in 2028. Meanwhile, tensions continue to rise.
As of Friday afternoon, Sears’ petition to rezone Jackson Park as dog-friendly had nearly 840 signatures. A competing petition, created July 1, had racked up nearly 100 names.
Hannah Morley, who lives by Jackson Park and plays in a soccer league that uses its turf field, said she’s disturbed by the animosity the canine conundrum has stirred up among neighbors. Morley said she was harassed as she put up posters urging the city to keep dogs banned from the athletic field.
“We also want other people’s voices heard, but we’re encountering threats of violence and scary language,” Morley said. “There just seems to be a lot of distrust and anger.”
Despite the controversy, Daniels’ softball team is tied for first place in the league’s standings. The Grass Stains are gunning for the championship with him pitching from the mound. But the battle over the park is still in the early innings.
“There’s just something special about this park,” Daniels mused as he watched the sun set over the field Tuesday. “I don’t know what it is.”