A new resident in one of the Sunshine Coast’s oldest and biggest towns is stunned there is no fenced dog park there and is urging the local council to provide one.
Tracy Cooper recently relocated from Gympie to Nambour before realising she could not let her two rottweilers off the leash.
“I’m surprised Nambour has no fenced dog parks: there are a lot of dogs in the area,” she said.
There are two unfenced off-leash areas in the town and Sunshine Coast Council said it was investigating options for more dog parks across the region.
Ms Cooper said Benji and Roxy needed somewhere to exercise.
“It’s unsafe to have our dogs running in an unfenced area,” she said.
“We pay rates and dog registrations, so we don’t understand why Nambour doesn’t have fenced areas but every other suburb does. Nambour is missing out.”
She took to social media for help.
“I have resorted to posting on Facebook to see if someone has a spare bit of fenced land they could lease or we could pay-as-we-go to let the pups have a run,” she said.
Locals responded to her post by informing her that the closest fenced dog parks were at Palmwoods, Bli Bli and Mapleton. One is also on the way to the smaller neighbouring town of Yandina.
Ms Cooper said Nambour should “definitely” be provided with an enclosed space.
“There is nowhere safe to give the dogs a run in Nambour,” she said.
“For the safety of our furry friends and the public we need a fenced area, if not two.”
Nambour, which is about 150 years old, and its immediate surrounds have a population of about 20,000 people.
A council spokesperson detailed why the two off-leash parks within Nambour (Quota Memorial Park in Mathew Street and Petrie Park on Petrie Park Road) were not enclosed.
“These dog areas are not fenced as they are located in a flood zone,” they said.
“Fencing these spaces would hinder the natural flow of flood water, potentially worsening the effects of flooding impacts on the surrounding properties.”
The spokesperson said there were several dog exercise areas on the Sunshine Coast and more could be on the way.
“Council is committed to creating quality public spaces that encourage active and healthy lifestyles and our dog exercise areas across the region help us achieve that,” they said.
“They provide social and physical spaces for dogs and their owners.
“Council is investigating a number of options for additional dog exercise areas across the region and will keep our community informed.”
Council currently provides 46 dog exercise areas across the region: 21 of these are fenced and 14 are unfenced. There are 11 sections of off-leash beach (with another 20km of beach that allow on-leash dog access).
For more information and a list of areas by suburb that are designated off-leash areas for dogs on the Sunshine Coast visit council’s website.
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