To the Editor:
I moved to The Villages from Pinellas Park, Fla. I bought a new home in Fenney and was told they were building a new dog park, Dudley Canine Park. I was sold and bought my new home. I have two AKC Chocolate Labs. Bridget is spayed and Devlin is not in that he is a stud dog for the breed. Some may not understand this but we need to keep our pedigree lines active. I support adoption of shelter dogs but I also see a need for keeping our pedigree lines intact.
I have been going down to the Dudley park for weeks, eager for the opening. I recently went down and the regulation sign was posted. My heart sunk. One of the regulations said that dogs must be neutered or spayed. Well, Bridget was spayed but Devlin was intact as he is a stud dog.
I called the Recreation Department and conveyed my concern and was told the manager was out to lunch and would return my call. That never happened. A week later, I called again and left a message for Matt. He did call me back and said he had never experienced a situation like mine. He said he would get back to me. Not hearing from him, I called back and was told my request to have Devlin at the park was denied.
Some may think a dog that is not fixed is a problem. This is just false rumors. If my Devlin caused any issues, I would remove him immediately. The most common issues are aggression issues and my Labs are the friendliest dogs you will ever encounter.
Labs need exercise and love to retrieve balls. I am now considering a move to a more dog friendly town. The friendliest hometown in the country is certainly not the friendliest to some dogs.
Thomas J. Lee
Village of Fenney
