Some dog parks are large—acres or miles of paths—but most are less than an acre in size, and some are tiny. Some are flat gravel or dirt, while others have picnic tables, trees, and other objects.
Dogs (and their owners) need a place where they can run free, sans leashes, and do “doggie” things. Many of their owners have no yards and the dogs would otherwise spend their entire outdoor lives on leash.
Dog parks offer a safe place for their dogs to exercise and play with others. They offer socialization with a variety of breeds. There a great place for dogs with energy that need to run especially if your home does not have space in your yard.
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But you won’t find pup-friendly green spaces everywhere in America, and if you do, they won’t all be up to snuff. So what are 2021’s Best Dog Park Cities?
LawnStarter ranked 97 U.S. cities based on access, quality, and climate factors to find out.
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See which 10 cities lead (and the 10 that lag behind) the pack below, followed by some highlights and lowlights from their report.
Highlights and Lowlights:
San Francisco: Leader of the Pack: The Golden City exerts its dominance over the rest of America’s dog-park hubs as our No. 1 Best Dog Park City.
Dogs are clearly man/woman’s best friends here: Pups (purportedly) outnumber children — human children, that is — in San Francisco. So it’s only natural that the city would devote so much green space to one of its largest populations. In fact, the Golden City outranks 92 other cities in number of dog parks per 100,000 (two-legged) residents.
Couple that stellar performance in Access (No. 5) with its balmy climate (No. 8), and San Francisco easily earns its half-point edge over Oakland to snag first place overall. This city takes puppy love to a whole new level.
West in Show: San Francisco isn’t the only western city to steal the spotlight in our ranking. Four other California cities, along with Portland, Oregon, at No. 3, Boise, Idaho, at No. 4, and Henderson, Nevada, at No. 6 claim the other spots in the top 10.
How did the West win the race? California’s biggest cities ride high on their Mediterranean-type climate — ideal for comfortable, year-round visits to the dog park. Boise, Portland, and Henderson, on the other hand, boast the three highest numbers of dog parks in the country when adjusted for population size. Live with your canine companion in one of these cities, and you’ll raise one spoiled pup.
Texas Cities in the Doghouse: The Lone Star State’s biggest cities finish in our ranking with their tails between their legs. At No. 41, El Paso is tops among Texas cities.
Unfortunately, five Texas cities land in the bottom 10, including Fort Worth, Arlington, and Plano in 88th to 90th places, respectively, and Garland in 95th. Laredo comes in dead last.
What accounts for their poor showing? Lack of access to dog parks is largely to blame. For Laredo, it’s also poor average park quality — the poorest, in fact, among the cities we measured. Bad, Texas!
Other Findings Include:
Boise, ID has the most dog parks per 100,000 residents and Santa Ana, CA, Garland, TX, Newark, NJ and Hialeah, FL have the fewest dog parks per 100,000 residents.
Buffalo, NY has the highest average rating for dog parks while Laredo, TX has the lowest average rating for dog parks.
Their full ranking and analysis can be found here: https://www.lawnstarter.com/blog/studies/best-dog-park-cities/