By Kate Doherty
As campgrounds become more and more crowded, are new RVers less likely to practice social etiquette with their neighbors when they own incessantly barking dogs? Perhaps they were remiss and have not trained their dog(s), believing the portable pen outside their RV is adequate.
Meeting unfriendly pets
Many of us walk for exercise but also enjoy meeting new faces as we meander around the park or campground. How many of us have met dogs that bark with every motion or person walking by and the owner ignores the dog completely or yells at the dog(s) to shut up?
Just last week my spouse and I were walking around the RV park. We usually stop to become acquainted with a new furry friend or their owner(s). We stopped to chat with a work camper whose large dog barked incessantly, baring his teeth as we stood outside the fence. Rather than politely moving the dog inside, both owners yelled at the dog to “shut up,” which fell on deaf ears. This situation is not isolated. I’ve experienced this incident where you can’t speak over the cacophonous barking. One doesn’t have to be a lip reader to understand the body language of passersby who are thinking the very same.
Pet etiquette
I am a pet lover and really enjoy meeting new dogs, more so if well-behaved. I can’t speak for everyone, but I’d bet the majority of you have experienced noisy pets that have disturbed one’s quiet sanctuary. I’ve witnessed couples reading on a quiet afternoon, leave their lounge chairs and go inside their RV when pet commotion disturbs their silence nearby. Or dogs running from side to side in the pen while the owner(s) are nowhere to be seen.
#1 Pet peeve:
According to the owners of Mountain View RV Park & Campground, a pet friendly, immaculate park we stayed three weeks last year, two major complaints they hear are, “I stepped in dog poop at my site and don’t own a dog! . . . And, folks aren’t picking up their dog’s poop in the dog park!” Not cool. Apparently, some folks simply ignore their park’s leash policy allowing their dog(s) to wander off-leash, pooping wherever. And, what’s worse, the park’s owners are left to clean up the forgotten poop bombs. Social etiquette notwithstanding.
Social etiquette for everyone
Pet etiquette is important to folks who do not own pets any longer or have never owned pets. Their personal space and enjoyment is just as important as RVers’ personal space and enjoyment with pets. There are many parks we stayed at where they have a dog park, as well as restricted areas to walk your dog(s). And, of course, picking up their poo afterward is expected everywhere, but sometimes overlooked. So, what do you say about pets who disturb your personal space?
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When campers pay to stay at a campground, it is with the assumption that the stay will be a reasonably peaceful one. It is up to management to provide what is expected, unless they advertise otherwise. Unruly animals AND campers need to stay home.
We’re about to head out on a trip with 3 humans & 2 dogs. Since my SIL has never been to Grand Canyon & it’s her “Bucket List” trip, I have volunteered stay at the RV with the dogs if necessary, so they don’t disturb others and she gets to really enjoy seeing the sights.
I agree that people are sometimes more annoying than pets. But some pet owners believe their pet doesn’t need to obey the rules – leash, poop pick up, barking. We travel with 3 medium sized dogs & for the most part they are great courteous campers, but they are dogs. We pick up after them. Always on leash even in camp site. & try to limit their barking, but like I said they are dogs.
I hate to admit it but I will pick up poop when I see the owner leave it, see where they’re camped and later leave it back on their site. Every time…
I have considered a silent dog whistle to get dog owners attention. I have sprinkled red & black pepper on trees and bushes near my rig. However, if fido poops in my site, and the owner doesn’t clean it up, I have taken it to their camper. Leave it on the steps or picnic table.
If my Yorkie pooped and barked all day it’s still not as annoying as the campers with 15 kids running amok. Camp ground etiquette applies to people too
Oh yes it is.
and those with generators
I agree that kids can be loud. Adults can be just as bad. We had neighbors recently – a few campsites away yet – who played their music so loud, we could hear it inside our rig well enough to sing to with doors and windows closed, a/c running and TV on. Same guy had a big dog in a pen at 5am barking.
Dogs should not be left outside in a pen, no matter what size. If they want to leave their dog in a fenced area, why not leave them home?
Dogs do bark but for some, it’s part of their nature when they are happy. Our two Yorkies are night and day to each other. But the barky one only barks to play – his sister only barks when she’s on an unfamiliar situation which triggers her brother. But it lasts all of 15 seconds. They don’t sit outside barking and they don’t bark on leash.
We camp with our labradoodle who loves to bark at people and other dogs, so several years ago we bought a bark collar. It has 3 settings-a beep, a vibration and a shock. We have never had to use the vibration or shock settings. In fact we don’t even have to turn it on anymore, we just put the collar on her and she has no idea that it is turned off. She is a nice, calm, friendly dog as long as she has her collar on.
Who picks up dog pee? That’s everywhere, and virtually every camper has a dog.
Amen! You can see it on every post, rock, bush, tree, tire and all the dead grass spots.
Good point. We once watched an unleashed dog scramble from its RV site (and owners, who were sitting outside) to pee all over a water spigot at another site. Eww!
Not sure of your point. There is plenty of wildlife doing nature’s thing all around us. Do you think rabbits, skunks, armadillos, coyotes, squirrels, rats, birds, etc. have a little restroom to relieve themselves? Just wipe or hose down whatever you use outside. Or, go sit on that picnic table and ponder what scampered across it right before you got there.
There have been a few times when I’ve actually offered a poop pickup bag to someone who didn’t attempt to pick up their dogs poop. Usually they have accepted my offer. When they don’t, I pick it up and deliver it to them with a smile and an “I think you and your dog left this behind.”
I love well-mannered, well-behaved dogs. I can’t tolerate incessant barking mutts. For some dog owners, their fur babies can do no wrong. It’s the responsibility of dog owners to control their pets and be considerate of everyone.
I said,”Go to management because with today’s societal breakdown, you never know what or who you are dealing with.”
As the owner of rescue dogs I can tell you on good authority that not all dogs are other dog or kid friendly. My biggest pet peeve (pun intended) is folks with the extendable leashes. My dog is on a 6’ leash, 1” wide. Yours comes up on the end of a 15 or 20’ leash because you ignored the fact that he was running our way and you get upset with me because my dog isn’t all warm and friendly. And pick up your dog’s poop! If you can’t be a responsible pet owner, you shouldn’t be allowed to own a pet.
8 out of 10 of our dog owner observations reflect badly on the owners.
Leave your dogs at home or some other arrangement. You will enjoy the freedom.
And the bad behaviour won’t reflect badly on the whole RV community.
Our venue is dog trials,aka dog shows. Everything at the trial is outside. This means the trial site is usually a horse farm,park or town/county fair ground. We limit our drive distance to 8 hours so we don’t have to find an overnight stop. Believe me when I say exhibtor’s don’t put up with other people not policing their area, rude behavior from other people, and incessant barking. It is not uncommon for 2 to 3 hundred dogs to be on site for a 2 day trial When we leave the site is cleaner and more orderly than when we arrived if not you won’t be asked back. Rules are rules for everyone. So why can’t campground management or ownership run a tight ship. Break the rules you get a warning. 2nd time you are GONE= NOW! And call the police if needed and put that jerks name on a banned list.
Unfortunately the same can not be said for all kennel clubs. We were onsite before and after the Virginia Kennel Club show in 2019 at Doswell, VA. The main building looked like a doggy waste storm inside. They have some work to do to get to Jesse’s standard.
I agree! The dog barking is saying “Help me! I’ve been held hostage by an owner too dumb to understand what i’m saying! Please tranq my human and I’ll show you where the valuables are in the RV. And the steaks.” At least that’s what i hear. Except dogs speak in german.
I literally don’t understand untrained dog owners. Why would YOU want a barking dog tugging on a leash and charging? People are shocked when my dogs sit offleash roadside and wag silently when they walk by, or sit inside the RV door until called out and sit again outside, or auto sit/stay whenever a car approaches without being told. Dogs LOVE to please, so this training is easy if you just repeat it consistently. If you don’t tell your pets what you expect, don’t blame them for doing unwanted things you said were ok. And yes, like the showdogger above, responsible owners are the strictest critics…
Even good dog owners sometimes forget that a large, friendly, lab running towards a small toddler can be terrifying! We have had so many experiences with bad dogs (irresponsible owners) that I would be happy to see dogs banned from beaches, parks and campgrounds. I know that isn’t fair but neither is having to always take your walking stick so you can defend yourself and your grandchildren.
We have two Corgi’s. While walking them leashed on a recent camping trip, a woman and her fluff ball dog ran up to us. I told this lady to keep her dog away from us. “Karen” insisted our dogs weren’t “socially adjusted” and they should be fine with other dogs running up to them. She went on to say we need to train them better! Our dogs are actually very social as they routinely go to doggie day care at the Vet, running around and playing all day with 20 other dogs. And I don’t appreciate anyone or any dog running up to us. Some people out there just amaze me.
Just last week, called the park office regarding 3 dogs, one owner, who left at 5:00 a.m. to go to work. The park employee said “Well what do you expect ME to do about it?” Unbelievable. Ended up calling the sheriff. Problem solved.
I tolerate other people and their dogs as long as they stay out of my site and don’t bark. A single woof while not appreciated is also tolerated. Anything else is reported. I don’t want my cats stressed by other peoples dogs and my cats are indoor only, they panic when we move them from the house to the coach and then back to the house. So yes, I will report the rule breaking dog owners in a heartbeat.
I realize this article is a year old, but wouldn’t be fun to bring in a cat the size of your dogs on a leash ? Claws & teeth, let it run free to play with your barking, pooping dogs.
Dog will be dogs.Some peoples should not be dog owners.Takes all kinds to make the world around.Not the dogs fault.
Sooooo true!
Often people are offended when you think their animals are a nuisance and will complain that you are the problem. If that is their defense then only management can resolve the problem, but I can count on one hand the issues we have had with dogs in the past 35 years.
Our last barking episode came from the dogs of the camp host. Didn’t see the rangers but reported it in our review of park.
We travel with three dogs socialized to meet other people and animals. Other than lots of walks, we generally don’t put them outside…they hang out in the RV. I hate barking, so any dog I have will not be an incessant barker. We pick up after them, even on hiking trails where many dog owners apparently think it’s OK to have their dog crap in the middle of the trail and just leave it!
We’re currently in a beautiful county park and yesterday we saw the epitome of a bad dog ownership behaviour. At the start of a trail, literally at the base of a park sign post asking dog walkers to pick up after their dogs, and complete with free poop bags in a dispenser, was a giant pile of dog poop! Might not have been a camper because the park has many non-camping users.
Seeing dog poop, unleashed dogs (a dog on a leash dragging it around isn’t leashed BTW), or constantly barking dogs angers me because it completely erases the behavior and example we work hard to set with our dogs.
An easy cleanup bag is a plastic sandwich bag which holds one sandwich and has a flap for closure. Insert your hand, pick up the object; while removing your hand, pull the flap over and dispose of properly. I used these for several years with our late Dalmatian. Clean, sanitary and responsible. (Object may be warm!). Oh, by the way, she didn’t bark – as long as I showed her I had a treat in my hand — or if someone came to the door!
Wow, the picture looks just like my Jack Russell Terrier. We travel with her and my wife’s American Cocker both breeds being known as barkers. I worked hard with them and trained them that “enough” means stop barking. They are never outside alone. When we leave them, the night shades are down and a white-noise machine is on and never had anyone tell us that they heard them bark, but we own a Newmar and they are known as being very soundproof. Yes, we ask neighbors if they barked regularly.
There is absolutely no excuse not to have a poop bag with you. All of them come with the ability to be attached to any kind of leash you may use. I always “offer” one to any person I see getting ready to walk off without picking up after their pet. It’s fun to see how flustered some of those people get when called for their bad behavior.
AMEN and Thank You Pat!