Dog parks are common features of most US cities and towns these days, but it wasn’t always like this.  The Smithsonian Magazine recently took a closer look at how dog parks evolved in the US.

The first known municipal dog park was created in Berkeley, California in 1979, as a spin-off of the famous People’s Park.  It’s called the Ohlone Dog Park and began life as an empty lot.  Founders of the dog park petitioned the city to legally allow their dogs to run and play off-leash within the park.

In 1983, the city agreed to an “experimental” dog park on the site, and the rest is history!  The Ohlone Dog Park Association began to hear from dog lovers across the nation, asking them for advice on how to start their own dog parks.

The dog park trend spread from California to the rest of the country, as the ideas of both urban planning and dog ownership began to evolve in the 1990s.

Dog parks grew with the sense that our dogs are beloved members of the family, deserving of all the perks of being our fur children.  At the same time, urban planners began envisioning different sorts of public spaces for city dwellers, and the movement of “dog-friendly” businesses was also becoming popular.

Experts do note that it’s more common to find dog parks in affluent and gentrified neighborhoods; they refer to less affluent areas as “dog park deserts.”  Hopefully that will change as dog parks continue to spread!