Wilmington Dog Park — Attraction in Wilmington

The Wilmington dog park is a great addition to the town of Wilmington. It's great for anyone with a dog that needs a close location to stop by and let their dog have some socialization. The "regulars" that go there (myself included) are a great group of citizens that just want to have a nice place for their puppers to enjoy. You will have plenty of fun times there watching your dog play with other dogs and chatting with the locals. There are plenty of friendly people and dogs.

That being said there are some issues with the park that I will highlight below:

1. The park is carry in carry out and there is no trash barrel. If your dog poops you are responsible for picking it up and leaving with it. There are certain people that do not pick up after their dogs which is quite an issue. I would advise you to watch where you step when walking around. Other irresponsible dog owners bag it and leave it in the park for someone else to bring home, or they leave it in the parking lot for you to run over with your car.

2. The town does practically no maintenance to the park. The regulars have gotten together on more than one occasion and done the maintenance such as poop clean up, raking leaves in the fall, and snow removal/clearing. It would be a much better place if the town of Wilmington put in some effort.

3. There is limited parking. During the week you will be able to find a spot but on the weekends the dog park can get crowded and rowdy and the parking lot may be full. It's a fenced in park but space is still a...

The dog park is very large and for the most part enjoyed by responsible pet owners. However because there is no trash can ignorant dog owners don't pick up after their dogs or if they do, they leave it along the fence instead of taking it with the. There is a group of people trying to keep the park open and well kept, but need the help of ALL dog owners. Also, over the weekend a woman showed up with 3 dogs, let them wander the parking lot by themselves off leash and then got them into the dog park. They were very nasty dogs who had no collars or tags on them. One of them went after my dog and I decided to leave. It would be nice if the dog officer would do random checks to make sure dog owners have their dogs wearing their tags and have a means to control their dog(s) by having leashes. This dog owner of the year had no leashes or collars and nasty dogs, a recipe...

I have visited many dog parks in the New England area and have never encountered a carry out your own excrement policy. Nobody enjoys being in the enclosed space of a car with dog feces with nowhere to wash your hands. A ridiculous policy that many people do not adhere to, and leave their poop bags along the fence. Every other dog park on the planet budgets in the removal of excrement. This is an unsanitary, potentially harmful practice that the good people of Wilmington need to bring back to the table. Why would you let your park be threatened with closing because of a needless and easily remedied problem. I think maybe a fresh perspective and consultation from a well established dog park is in order. These compassionate folks would be more than...