EASTHAM — Dogs are not known for their literary prowess, their exceptional reading comprehension skills, nor for staying put for extended periods of time. Yet on the morning of March 2, in the children’s program room at the Eastham Public Library, four dogs from Hearts & Paws laid down their heads and listened to local children read aloud from canine-themed picture books.
dogs
UNLEASHED
Eastham Will Hold Off on Wiley Park Leash Rule
Conservation and open space committees agree to enforce rule against bikes on walking trails
EASTHAM — The conservation commission has voted to allow dogs to continue to be off leash during the summer on trails under its authority as long as their owners can control them with voice commands.
The commission had considered adding a regulation prohibiting off-leash dogs from June 15 to Labor Day, an idea that drew heavy opposition from local dog owners last spring.
The focus of the discussion has been on the 70-acre Wiley Park and Nickerson conservation area, categorized as a priority habitat for rare plants and wildlife in Mass Wildlife’s Natural Heritage Endangered Species Program.
Members of both the conservation commission and the open space committee had become concerned about increased erosion and destruction of delicate habitat. After receiving more than 100 emails from dog owners, the two committees decided to host listening sessions in April, at which they laid out their environmental concerns and listened to what dog owners had to say.
During one session, conservation commission chair Karen Strauss said she was worried about new trails being created, particularly to the ponds. “We’ve seen evidence that people brought saws and loppers to cut trees and shrubs,” Strauss said. “These openings have been used for beach chairs, picnics, and recreation, for launching kayaks and stand-up paddle boards.” The activity had increased erosion and degraded vegetation, she said.
Following a June hearing on the draft regulations, the commission agreed to table the matter for the summer while a survey was conducted to determine what was happening during dog walks on conservation lands.
Commission member Michael Harnett and Ed Daniels, president of the 220-member Eastham Dog Owners’ Association, organized the monitoring effort. The results showed that dogs were mostly well behaved.
“The main issue was during Covid, when groups of up to 18 or 20 would gather,” Harnett said in a phone interview this week. “Each one had at least one dog and possibly more than one, and the dogs ran wild and just ripped up the place.
The monitoring, Harnett said, revealed some digging but nothing like the kinds of damage seen earlier. “So, we voted, at this point, to leave them off leash,” he said.
The commission did enact a rule that all dogs remain leashed in the parking lot and until they reach the trails. Other rules include that no more than three dogs are allowed per walker; leashes can be no longer than 10 feet; dogs and walkers may not enter posted areas for nesting or habitat restoration areas; walkers and pets must remain or trails and designated areas such as parking and beach areas; and owners are responsible for removal and disposal of pet waste.
Reached by phone this week, Daniels said he and the dog owners’ association are pleased with the commission’s decision. “Keeping dogs on leash in the parking lots is a no-brainer,” he said. Daniels also said clearer markers could encourage people to stay on the trails.
During the Nov. 14 meeting when the commission took its vote, Stephanie Sykes, the town’s new animal control officer, said education through signage and more monitoring of the trails should help address issues.
Well-Educated Dogs
In a phone interview, Strauss said that one of the concerns at Wiley Park had been “conflicts between unleashed dogs and other users.”
Daniels sees education as the solution to that problem. “Some dogs shouldn’t be off leash,” he said. “The owner should know that, and if they don’t know, we need to educate them on how a dog off leash should behave.”
“I would also like to encourage people who are in our conservation areas and have conflicts with animals or people to report it to the police or conservation department so we have a record of it over time,” Strauss said.
It’s a matter of everyone in the community cooperating, according to Daniels. He recalled a time years ago when “there were a lot of complaints about dog feces being left at Wiley Park.” The association got to work on that problem: “We went out and did a poop pickup party, and there was a ridiculous amount of waste.” He estimated the group collected 50 to 60 pounds of dog waste and litter.
“We advocated through our membership that we wanted to keep things clean,” Daniels said, and they put up boxes with dog waste bags. After a while, “it wasn’t a problem anymore,” he said. The dog owners’ association hopes for a similar outcome when it comes to unleashed dogs.
Bike and Kayak Rules
The commission voted to enforce a provision prohibiting bike riding on the Wiley and Nickerson land, a rule that was in place but not enforced; now it will be posted. While monitors didn’t spot bikes during the summer survey, they did see evidence of bike use on the trails. “The trails are narrow and heavily vegetated so you can’t see very far,” Harnett said. “Bikes tend to go fairly fast.”
Under the new regulations, those using watercraft like kayaks and canoes must enter the ponds in Wiley and Nickerson using the public boat ramp at Great Pond Beach.
Both Strauss and open space committee chair Frances Lewis said development of a comprehensive land management plan is vital to protecting conservation areas. What they’re looking for, Lewis wrote in an email, is “to find an appropriate and sustainable balance between protecting and preserving these special resources and community use for passive recreation so that the town can continue to benefit from all that these spaces offer us.”
This Week In Eastham
Meetings Ahead
Meetings are held remotely. Go to eastham-ma.gov/calendar-by-event-type/16 and click on the meeting you are interested in to read its agenda and find information on how to view and take part remotely.
Tuesday, May 11
- Conservation Commission, 6 p.m.
Wednesday, May 12
- Finance Committee, 5 p.m.
Thursday, May 13
- Nauset Regional School Committee, 6:30 p.m.
Conversation Starters
Beaches and Dogs
The select board agreed at their May 3 meeting to open Campground Beach and Wiley Park to both Eastham beach sticker holders and $25 day passes that can be purchased from the parking lot gate attendants.
“The reason for adding Wiley is because the Great Pond side is sticker only, and Wiley has public restrooms, water, a playground, and good parking,” said Town Administrator Jacqui Beebe.
While people will be welcome at the beaches, the same cannot be said for dogs, as board member Art Autorino asked recreation and beach dept. director Christine Mickle if the beaches could be checked periodically for violators of the “no dogs allowed” rules.
“There’s big signs there and they just basically ignore them,” said Autorino.
Board chair Jamie Demetri noted seeing “more and more people with dogs” and suggested that for next year the board consider adding another dog friendly beach.
“One of the issues we have is people aren’t picking up after their dogs — even when we allow them on the beach,” said Autorino. —Linda Culhane
DOG DAYS
Pandemic Is No Treat for the Four-Legged
While owners shelter at home, anxiety can be infectious
WELLFLEET — Though canines won’t be receiving a stimulus check, that doesn’t mean they haven’t been affected by the coronavirus crisis.
Because of your dog’s acute ability to sense stress in people, it might be just as stressed out as you are, according to Sadie Hutchings, a veterinarian at Herring Cove Animal Hospital in Provincetown.
“They can’t understand that you are stressed about the pandemic, or because you just watched the news,” Hutchings said. “They just sense your increased anxiety, which, in turn, makes them anxious.”
Depending on the dog, anxiety can cause a variety of behavioral patterns. Most often, a stressed dog might begin chewing on objects that it otherwise wouldn’t touch, or start following its caretaker around the house, or even bark at nonthreatening sounds.
Despite the increase in stress, Hutchings thinks the pandemic has been, overall, a positive development for our four-legged friends.
“Dogs enjoy people being home all the time,” she said. “Healthwise, a lot of dogs are getting more interaction with their owners, which is better for their well-being.”
Deborah Grabler, president and co-founder of Provincetown’s popular Pilgrim Bark Park, agreed that increased socializing is a good thing.
“Having this park gives [dogs] a slice of normalcy, where they can run free and off leash,” said Grabler. “It also gives owners an excuse to venture out. With happier, less frightened owners, you have happier, less frightened dogs.”
All that quality time between dogs and owners does not always mean decreased aggression, though. In fact, in some cases, it has led to the opposite.
In June, Wellfleet dealt with three dog-bite incidents, a much higher number than usual, according to animal control officer Desmond Keough.
The reason, according to Keough, is twofold.
First, there are more frequent home deliveries, with many people ordering supplies online instead of venturing out to shop, which has led to multiple attacks on delivery people, Keough said.
The other factor is the increased contact between pets and people in homes.
“With so many people working from home, and an increase in second-home owners sheltering on the Cape — with many doing outdoor activities like biking, walking, often with dogs — there is an increase in dog-people interactions,” Keough said.
A case in point is Wellfleet’s most recent dog-bite incident. On June 18, a three-year-old girl was bitten by a pit bull while visiting family in Wellfleet. The child suffered two puncture wounds under her eye and was taken to Cape Cod Hospital, where she received stitches.
According to Keough, the dog was being kept outside while the dog’s owner and guests were having a barbecue, but someone left a screen door open that allowed the dog back inside.
The girl was playing with the dog’s water bowl when she was bitten.
The dog had been properly vaccinated and was quarantined for the mandatory 10 days to ensure no rabies symptoms developed.
There will be no public hearing about the incident or effort to ban the dog from town, according to Keough.
But he expects to see a further increase in bites on beaches, which he deals with every summer.
With more people going out now, more dogs will be left alone at home, which might cause further harm to man’s best friend, according to Hutchings.
“It’s going to be difficult with people going back to work and creating a separation issue,” she said.
With pets so used to having their owners around all the time, a sudden change in the amount of interaction might result in mental health issues for dogs.
“Hopefully,” Hutchings said, “people are preparing their pets by being away from home in small increments, keeping them busy with toys, and just distracting them and not reminding them they are alone.”