STARTING today dog walkers will face strict restrictions on beaches across Donegal. On 12 of the counties designated Blue Flag beaches dogs will be banned from 11am to 7pm, right through the summer months to mid-September.
The Donegal News went to some of the county’s most popular beaches to see how the public felt about the council’s newly imposed restrictions. There were mixed reactions.
Aidan Lawlor who was walking Marble Hill Beach with his dog Aslan is against the ban that he described as “unfair”.
“A beach is an open space and our pets should be able to enjoy it as much as we do,” he added.
His sister lives and works nearby, she has three young children and a pet dog. He believes this will prevent them from visiting the popular beach this summer.
Another family member who was walking with him said she believes the ban might also affect tourism.
“People choose to holiday in Ireland instead of going abroad, so they can take their dog with them and places have become much more inclusive for pets.
“Many local restaurants, pubs and shops are now dog-friendly, but a beach which is an open space isn’t, that doesn’t make sense,” she said.
Aoife and Rebecca who were also walking on Marble Hill said although they do not have a dog themselves, they believe the ban would be a deterrent that will take people away from the area.
“At the end of the day I’ve never seen dogs do any harm on the beach, people do more harm being antisocial and littering,” Aoife said.
Marianne and Aoife Rodgers were walking Carrickfinn with their dog Mac. They both agree that the ban is unfair, especially if dogs are being kept on a lead. They said dog owners need to be more responsible in a public space.
Aidan also believes responsible dog owners should not be punished because of a few bad owners.
Danny and Luca Browne who also regularly walk Carrickfinn explained how they have never had any issues with dogs on the busy beach, but they both agreed that dogs need to be kept on leads.
Marianne and Aoife said they can understand the issue from both perspectives because when Aoife was younger she was terrified of dogs. She described how she would run up the sand dunes to avoid dogs on the beach.
Another group of local women running on Carrickfinn Beach said they “100 per cent agree with the ban”. One woman described how she is also terrified of dogs.
She described a recent encounter when a dog jumped on her and planted his two paws on her shoulders.
She believes that dogs can sense her fear.
She explained how dog owners often say, “don’t worry- they won’t touch you”. She described this phrase as infuriating.
Another walker who wanted to remain anonymous said when her children were growing up she was afraid of them playing in the sand on the beach because of dog poo.
She has no issue with people bringing their dog to the beach but finds it alarming that she never witnesses anyone carrying a poo bag.
“I was at this beach yesterday and saw a dog doing a big poo, his owner just kicked some sand to cover it up,” she said in shock.
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