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ePetition details

Need for dog park

We the undersigned petition the council to Earmark a fenced-in space within Witney for local dog owners to give their pets off-the-lead time.

With a large number Witney residents owning dogs, there is a need for a specifically identified, safe, fenced-in place for dogs to have off-the-lead time, as a community necessity. Dogs will always be part of the community, and they need amenities as much as any other resident.
Right now, there is an area in Witney which was purchased by local residents, supported by the Wychwood Trust and co-owned by WODC that is being used as such a space. However, this is not the currently agreed use of this space, and the ability for dog owners to continue using it is in jeopardy. This petition does not place a demand or claim on this space, rather that some space walkable to Witney residents be made available for this use, whilst non-dog owners are welcome to come and visit with the understanding that, in this space, dogs will be off the lead.
This provides multiple community benefits and necessities:
1- It ensures local dogs get appropriate space to socialise, so that they are less likely to be aggressive and unruly in other places
2- Human socialising is encouraged and facilitated. The current unofficial 'dog park' is a space for frequent use, and local residents are making greater neighbourly connections in this way. Furthermore, groups of dog owners arrange meetings for collective socialisation and dog play. Removing this resource, and failing to provide a specific space for this will not only mean that dogs do not get to socialise, but will result in neighbourly and communal dissolution.
3- Currently, many people from surrounding areas travel to Witney with the main aim of walking dogs in the space currently being used as a 'dog park'. These people then often go into town and spend money on the high street, providing increased footfall to Witney businesses. Small local businesses, and Witney town, benefit from this footfall.
4- Currently the only place available for this purpose nearby is in Curbridge. People who want to use this space must pay, and Witney residents must drive to this area in order to use it. Not only is the financial burden excessive, but the carbon footprint to use it unnecessary and avoidable, should spaces in Witney be removed

This petition requests that, as a community good, an earmarked, fenced-in space for dogs and dog walkers be made available within an easily walkable distance from Witney town centre.

This ePetition runs from 13/11/2024 to 15/01/2025.

34 people have signed this ePetition.