Reply #8: I wish I could take my dog to the dog park

[Duer 157099]

I took her once (she's recently adopted, have only had her a few months) and kept her on leash to see how she would respond. There was only one dog there (golden) who ran up to us to be friends and they sniffed and then my dog growled and lunged. I had her on harness and was able to keep control of her, but now I'm very frustrated with how to go about socializing her when I cannot take her to where dogs are. I don't know how she would react after the initial growl/lunge -- she might just be ok, I don't know. And, I know that being on leash affects their behavior too -- they feel restrained and more vulnerable and thus more agressive.

So, I keep her away from other dogs, and I'm sure it's only making things worse by isolating her.