Forum Discussion

steveandjil's avatar
steveandjil
Explorer
Aug 03, 2015

dogs in national park campgrounds

Dear All,

I have not been active in the forums for some years, but a recent experience brings me back to the pet forum. We just finished a 2 week trip through some Arizona, Colorado and Utah national parks we have not yet visited. In particular we camped in Fruita CG in Capitol Reef NP. Truly wonderful - BUT, they have a no dog left alone rule. We have been camping in RV's for 15 years all the time with our dogs, and not only has this not been a problem; it has truly never occurred to me. In fact 3 months ago we camped in Watchman for a week with no problems.

This trip we happened to have our daughter with us, so one of the 3 of us could take turns not hiking and staying with the dogs. Most of the time now, my wife and I are alone - we simply could not have done anything like hiking or taking our Jeep into the back country.

Have the rules changed, or are they only now being enforced. I would hate to think that we can only stay in commercial campgrounds when we go to national parks, which are our main destinations. Have any of the other RVers who frequent NP's had a problem recently?

Steve
  • bob_nestor's avatar
    bob_nestor
    Explorer III
    Aug 03, 2015
    I have far fewer problems with dogs in the campground bending the rules than I do with owners who take their "well behaved dogs" with them on hikes in violation of the rules, especially in parks with bears and other such wildlife. All I need is for that little well behaved dog to aggravate a bear barking or whatever then run away leaving me to face a pissed off, hungry bear by myself. When I run into people like this on the trail I do my best to put as much distance between me and them as I can as quickly as I can.
  • Crowe's avatar
    Crowe
    Explorer
    Aug 03, 2015
    Our dogs are well behaved, and we are serious hikers.

    Mine are well-behaved, too, but since I don't have a camera on them when I'm not with them I can't say with 100% certainty they never bark.

    The last part of that is open to interpretation. I think most campers take it to mean unattended while outside the RV, "in the campground".

    Sorry but I believe you are incorrect. My experience has been it is NOT open to interpretation and if you read it without bias there IS only one interpretation. No dog unattended means just that-no unattended dogs inside or outside. If there are any questions then it's easy enough to call the campground
  • DOTLDaddy's avatar
    DOTLDaddy
    Nomad
    Aug 03, 2015
    From the Capital Reef NP website:

    "Pets must be restrained at all times on a leash 6 feet (1.8 m) or less in length. There are no kennels in the park and pets may not be left unattended in the campground."



    The last part of that is open to interpretation. I think most campers take it to mean unattended while outside the RV, "in the campground".

    Never the less, if your dog(s) are chronic barkers, don't leave them alone, inside or out. With technology today, it is very easy to determine if they are barking while you are away.

  • Executive45's avatar
    Executive45
    Explorer III
    Aug 03, 2015
    We've seen that rule in many private campgrounds as well, not just National Parks...If you leave them in your RV and the power fails, they could die..barking is another problem. Even though people say they don't, often they do...of course, you're not there so you wouldn't know for sure unless you had a GoPro hooked up or a recorder....Dennis
  • Old-Biscuit's avatar
    Old-Biscuit
    Explorer III
    Aug 03, 2015
    steveandjil wrote:
    darsben wrote:
    One croppy owner forces draconian rules.
    You leave your nice little doggy who is oh so loveable and while your gone it barks its fool head off. Ranger comes and if there is no rule then there is little he/she can do BUT with a rule then all is peaceful. My next door neighbor at a commercial CG recently had two little dogs like that. They were gone 8 hours and I had to go to the CG owner. No rule against it so nothing was done.
    It is a great rule


    Our dogs are well behaved, and we are serious hikers. If this is simply the state of affairs, we will no longer be able to map in NP CG's. One of the reason we got into RVing 15 years ago was to be able to travel with our dogs. I can see by the response, that at least one person likes the rule. I know many people go to such CGs and then sit at their RVs most of the day. We do not. The dogs are alone while we work, and they are quite used to it. Oh well. Curious if there are any other thoughts on this issue.


    Many Commercial CGs have had that 'rule' for long time.

    Can't think of a CG we stayed in over the course of 7 yrs full time travel that didn't have that rule except for some 'city parks' or fairgrounds.

    Did we break that 'rule'....YES
    Early on dog was left alone for several hours (same as when we worked) but as she aged during our travels we only left her alone for shorter and shorter periods. Hey---I have to go more frequent as I aged too!
  • steveandjil's avatar
    steveandjil
    Explorer
    Aug 03, 2015
    darsben wrote:
    One croppy owner forces draconian rules.
    You leave your nice little doggy who is oh so loveable and while your gone it barks its fool head off. Ranger comes and if there is no rule then there is little he/she can do BUT with a rule then all is peaceful. My next door neighbor at a commercial CG recently had two little dogs like that. They were gone 8 hours and I had to go to the CG owner. No rule against it so nothing was done.
    It is a great rule


    Our dogs are well behaved, and we are serious hikers. If this is simply the state of affairs, we will no longer be able to map in NP CG's. One of the reason we got into RVing 15 years ago was to be able to travel with our dogs. I can see by the response, that at least one person likes the rule. I know many people go to such CGs and then sit at their RVs most of the day. We do not. The dogs are alone while we work, and they are quite used to it. Oh well. Curious if there are any other thoughts on this issue.
  • darsben's avatar
    darsben
    Explorer II
    Aug 03, 2015
    One croppy owner forces draconian rules.
    You leave your nice little doggy who is oh so loveable and while your gone it barks its fool head off. Ranger comes and if there is no rule then there is little he/she can do BUT with a rule then all is peaceful. My next door neighbor at a commercial CG recently had two little dogs like that. They were gone 8 hours and I had to go to the CG owner. No rule against it so nothing was done.
    It is a great rule

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