Years ago when staying with friends in Tel Aviv, I was impressed by a nearby park off King George St.  The park featured, amongst other things, a fenced-off area where owners could go inside with their dogs and let them run off-leash.  Tel Aviv has long preceded Eilat on other animal issues as well, including the Trap-Neuter-Release programme for stray cats (which has not happened here beyond sporadic individual efforts) and implementation of ‘pooper scooper' laws (which did become law here eventually).  A dog park, however, has finally been created for the dogs of Eilat. 

Dog owners can now take their dogs for a walk and let them play in a park which has been set up for their and their owners' pleasure.  The upper part of Gan Fradkin is now designated as a dog park and includes two recreational devices for dogs, seating areas for their humans, a water trough for dogs, and a supply of ‘poop bags' for scooping up their leavings.  The fenced off dog park is 20 x 30 metres and includes a double gate to help prevent dogs getting away when entering or exiting.  Establishment of the park cost the City 60,000 NIS.

The law absolutely forbids having dogs run loose in public areas, although many Eilatis tend to conveniently ignore that law.  For the law-abiding, however, the park now provides a solution for letting dogs run off their energy and romp and play freely outdoors like nature intended. 

The park is open from 6 AM to 10 PM, and visitors are given safety instructions for the good of the park and the environment.  These include:

Dogs to be released inside only under owners' supervision;

Keep the gates closed at all times [they are on springs that help with this];

No entry to aggressive dogs, bitches on heat, or unvaccinated dogs;

Poop-scooping is mandatory, to maintain cleanliness of the park.

The City also has another surprise in wait for its canine residents: the Veterinary Service is working on making tags for their collars which would say "I'm an Eilati".  The disc will be a gift to around 2000 dogs registered with the veterinary department.

[Photos by Mikhal Ben-Shaprut]