God love the plover. It's not dogs but climate disruption and pollution that will kill off the species. There are no credible safety or environmental arguments to ban dogs from Ocean Beach. If you're uncomfortable around dogs or scared for you kids that is a fair issues that can be addressed and remedied with simple enforcement of current regulations. But don't use false arguments and moan about inconsiderate whiny dog guardians -- there are all types of whiners, and most don't have dogs. Let's get dogs licensed, then post clear rules to follow. It's going to be too late if we don't all work together to solve real environmental problems that are wiping out species and focus on safety that prevents murderous thugs that are oblivious to shooting 11-year old girls with stray bullets. The plover won't know the difference if dogs are there or not. Just ask one.

my dog and i live in the sunset, a mile's walk from the beach, and we go every day.

he's a generally well-behaved dog, and gets along with almost every dog we meet. of course, he is still a dog, and simply doesn't mind well enough with the distractions of a park -- i don't trust him off-leash when we're only a few feet away from moving traffic or other dogs that could react in a number of ways.

we walk at least 2 miles a day, he gets his exercise, but being able to play at the beach is his favorite thing and mine too.

here's my issue -- When we go to the beach, we pass joggers, other people with dogs, and of course the beach patrol driving up and down in their truck. not to mention piles of trash washed up/left by others.

i always clean up after my dog. i keep him at arm's length when other pooches come around -- for his safety. and i keep him on leash when he isn't splashing in the waves.
what damage is my dog doing that isn't already being done/will continue to happen?

instead of making a blanket law that discriminates against a very large portion of taxpaying citizens, maybe a real solution should be found -- what a novel idea! slight modifications in protocol and increases in manpower never hurt.

All Right!! - Pass that law! This column is example 7,452 of "The People Who Think Dogs Are People Too!!" Like The Bill of Rights applies to Sparky and Grover, and everyone else who drinks from toilets, sniffs your friend's ass, and licks their balls in public (alright, this could apply to half of the folks on the streets of San Francisco).

Isn't it amazing that there's never been a dog owner that owns a "bad" dog, and yet old people are knocked down routinely and kids have their throats ripped out. But it's always someone else's dog.

I don't really care about the plover, but I am glad my 3-year-old won't have that "good" Rottweiler with the chain for a collar chewing her face off on the beach some day.

I'm in the UK and am lucky to have many local beaches where I can still take my dog to roam freely with me, paddle in the water,roll in seaweed (yuk but he loves it). I hope the decision here does not spoil everyone's fun.

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I have a dog, and I vote. I let him off leash to chase his ball and exercise, and have most days in the 11 1/2 years I have had him. We go to a small neighborhood park where mostly he is the only dog and therefore not in harm's way.
However, I vote FOR leashing dogs in the GGNRA. As stated above by DAN, you can't tell which dogs have been appropriately socialized, and which have not. I have also observed at Crissy Field and Fort Funston that many dog guardians, including the "professional" dog walkers, are not responsible in minding and picking up after their charges.
Closing the GGNRA to off leash dog walking is not the end of all off leash dog walking. There are viable options for those who care enough to do the research.

Screw it, you know what I'm going to do? I'm going to go buy a water buffalo, put a bandana around its neck, give it a cute name and let it do whatever it wants. Everyone loves water buffalo and wants to be around them all the time, right? If anyone punctures my little fantasy bubble to complain I'm going to say the buffalo is my child. Then I'm going to bitch and moan that I and the water buffalo to which I am a guardian (not an owner, see, that would demean my child) need to run wherever we please because Billy Buffalo lives in my little flat and gets psycho if he doesn't get enough exercise. If anyone dares to suggest that maybe I shouldn't have a water buffalo since I live in a dense city, I'm going to use consultants and campaign donations to twist the arms of local politicians.

Everyone thinks their dog is different and it's *other* dogs that are problems. And if this dog is so slow he can hardly keep up with a walking person, what's the harm in a leash?

Fires, horses, fishing -- why should dog walking be the only major activity on the beach that doesn't come with a set of rules? And how many kids run up to strangers, yell at them, and then pee on their stuff?

And don't start with this BS idea of putting the beach back under city control. Three months later Ocean Beach would be a giant craphole filled with bums and broken infrastructure, and we all know it.

I wrote letters, my dog Zelda and I did the protest walk from Ocean beach. Not a dog fight, poop on the sidewalk---nothing but responsible dog owners on leash. My selfish concern is that I own a JRT and she needs to run to be happy. I walk her on leash most places but she loves to play ball. She could care less about birds unless they go for her ball. I just want to be able to run her once a day on the beach.

Most of the negative comments that are "pro" leash law and the reasons why they are becoming inevitable are because of uneducated people that look for scapegoats and someone to blame other than their ignorance. Dogs are not the reason to blame for shit on the beach and or your human lot in life. It's people. Irresponsible people who have trashed the beaches and who don't clean up poop, it's not the dogs fault. I agree that irresponsible owners should keep their dogs on leash if they are not in control, but don't punish everyone for one bad apple in the bunch. People who are anti dogs being off leash are uneducated and are potentially driven by fear because for some reason in their life, they had a bad experience with a dog and blame every dog they see for that. That's like a human having a bad experience with a bully and becoming anti-social and blaming all people for their one experience. Get educated people before you start blaming dogs for your unhappiness, when they make the majority of the world and their owners happy and scientifically have proven to be not only "man's best firend" but help those with medical conditions. I for one will refuse to take away my dog's happiness for some idiot's jaded and blameful perspective at the GGNRA. Get a clue - The dog population in sf is just as large as the kid population.

I've been to Ocean Beach since the above-mentioned restrictions went into effect and saw one dog owner out of about a dozen observing the on-leash rule in the snowy plover zone. I believe there's also a citywide "pooper scooper" law but if you were to take a stroll around my neighborhood you would quickly observe that a whole hoard of dog owners aren't abiding by that one either.

I love dogs and other animals, and I don't blame the dogs; I do blame their irresponsible, discourteous owners. There are good dog owners and bad dog owners, just as there are 'good' dogs and 'bad' dogs.

How to regulate things so that everyone -all people and all critters- is happy...? I have no idea. But regulations and stricter enforcement thereof is clearly needed if we're all going to live in harmony here...

How is it "anti-dog" to simply ask people to keep their dogs on a leash? Last time I looked, this is still an urban area. Leash laws are the norm in urban areas. It's not terribly responsible to have a country dog that needs wide open space to run around off-leash in a dense, city setting. It's just selfish (and anti-dog) to indulge a personal desire for a pretentious canine accessory without considering whether the environment is appropriate for the animal.

All dogs should be leashed when in public areas where other dogs are allowed. Who's to say/or know which one's are apt to be agressive.

thank you for sharing about this change. for those of us that missed the call to action before, is there anything that we can do to help keep OB open?

Dog shit at crissy field.
Enough said.
Clean that shit up

They are doing the same here in Pacifica. They are closing the Portola trail to dogs, even on leash. It is our favorite walk.. :(
It only takes a very select few irresponsible dog owners to totally mess things up for the rest of us...

Thanks for adding your voice and pen to the cause. Never really understood the GGNRA's motivation to
want to take away my dogs and my daily escape to serenity.

Very well put. I wonder how many of us will refuse to obey if the decision is anti-dog?