Dear Editor,
When visiting Jasper on the Thanksgiving weekend, I was delighted to see that Jasperites have finally found a new place where their dogs can happily run off-leash.
In the course of an easy morning walk at the Valley of the Five Lakes, we encountered a number of people walking their dogs, and only a couple were on a leash. When questioned, I was surprised to find that the majority said they were locals.So we can only assume that while the rules about dogs being leashed at all times in the national parks apply to tourists, some kind of dispensation has now been issued by Parks for residents!
As has been shown many times, a loose dog that runs off after the smell of a bear will bring it back to its master when it鈥檚 managed to annoy the animal enough, creating an unnecessary problem for all concerned. Past experiences on Pyramid Bench demonstrate that dogs accompanying trail runners and walkers are prone to being attacked by wolves, and as trail and road closures show, a caribou that meets a dog is less likely to breed.
It is nice to know that the new Parks dispensation for locals protects all these animals from harassment, although I do wonder how they are able to distinguish between law-abiding tourists and local residents to whom the usual regulations apparently don鈥檛 apply.
Perhaps Jasperites should lead the way in protecting the wild animals of the parks, instead of blithely assuming that as permanent residents they are excluded from following the the rules about having their dogs on a leash.
Peter McClure
Parkland County, AB
