John Gorrie Dog Park of Riverside Park — Attraction in Jacksonville

This is a free dog park with a big dog side (over 25 lbs) and a small dog side (under 25 lbs). There are two watering stations on each side, and in between both sides. There are at least 2 garbage bins and 2 benches in each side. The dog waste bags tend to be empty, but several people bring bags.

Most owners tend to be responsible by picking up after their dog and keeping track of their dog. There are occasional owners that don't pick up and really don't have control of their dog. There are also owners that take their big dogs on the small side, and vice versa. The issue with that is the small dogs can often set off the prey drive in the bigger dogs, which can be very detrimental, especially if the owners don't have verbal control of their dogs.

There usually aren't problems, and if there is a kerfluffle, it's usually resolved quickly.

06/28/2018 There has been mulch with curbing added to keep it in place in the larger dirt areas on both the large and small dog sides. The city is treating the ants, also.

*The dog park is being reconfigured. It will still have a large side and small side.

12/29/2018 The small side is ridiculously small now. The littles that like to rip and tear around have much less space to do so. We won't be back. Loved it before. Both sides were large and plenty of space to run. Not anymore. Plus, they took away seating and a watering station from the small side by incorporating them into the large side. The small side is less than half of what it used to be. So much for a nice, free dog park. No use wasting my gas money to drive...

I often bring my dog to this dog park, she’s a bigger dog so we mostly stay on the big dog side. She has plenty of space to run and play with other dogs, drink water if need be and occasionally plays with the various tennis balls scattered around the area. Today however (2.26.19), I brought her to the dog park and noticed there were a lot of new toys like small basketballs, frisbees, smaller balls and dog bones inside both parks. Unfortunately since some dogs tend to get territorial when it comes to their food, my dog ended up getting in a fight with another dog over one of the bones. Both my dog and the other dog have a history of getting along with other dogs. My dog is friendly and gets along and even plays with other dogs in the park who are 2x her size and are of different breeds, so for this to happen to her was very out of the ordinary. I’m not sure if it was the owners of the park or someone who was trying to do a good gesture and provide the dogs with more toys, but I WOULD NOT recommend bringing dog bones into the dog park for the dogs to play with since more incidents like this might happen. Me and the other dog owner ended up throwing the dog bones away from both parks, just for the safety of the other dogs that were to come. Other than this incident, I have no other complaints. The park is nice, with lots of space for all dogs to play and...

There are not a lot of dog parks in the area, so if you have a dog and frequent dog parks this is one of the few options. This park in particular is very poorly managed. People don’t pick up their dog’s excrement, along with the mismanagement of the grass and sand. It smells so terrible and I wouldn’t recommend walking around if you’re trying to avoid stepping in doo doo.

There is a group of people that completely monopolize the small dog section everyday. For hours. It’s as if they decide who is okay to go in that section when it’s a public park. While it’s fine to meet in a public park, it makes the experience for regular park goers annoying when all of the tables are taken all the time and there’s a small cooler set up. If you’re preoccupied with being social at a dog park you also completely miss your dog going to the bathroom and any potential tussles it could be involved in. The section is super small!

The large dog area always has a problematic dog that wants to start up a fight so it’s best to go during the day when no one is there. I like the trail going around the large dog area. That’s my advice about the park. Wish there were...