Blair County Dog Park Association

02/07/2025

IMPORTANT INFORMATION:
Texas Eastern has underground gas pipes running through the top part of the Dog Park. These lines have been there for decades and go down through the entrance driveway and across the top part of the park behind the storage building and garage. In the big picture, these lines carry liquid gasoline from Texas to Maine. The replacement pipes will be 36" in diameter. Contractors will be replacing the pipes with work starting toward the end of the month and continuing through summer. You will not have access to the park through the main driveway. They are building a temporary road through the field that runs to the left of the current driveway as you go into the park. There will be noise from heavy equipment during the weekday. Evenings and weekends should not be affected.

Surveyors will be out starting next week to mark the easement edges, the temporary work spaces and other features across the project work areas. We anticipate starting construction at the end of the month.

Here is the letter from the land procurement officer:
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Dear Blair County Dog Park Association:
Texas Eastern Transmission, LP will be conducting planned activities on its existing system in Blair County near HWY 164 and Agway Road in Martinsburg, PA.
The work is anticipated to begin in February 2025 and should be completed by September 1, 2025. Traditional access to the dog park will be impacted during this time. Alternate access will be provided by Texas Eastern to allow for ongoing use.
We appreciate your patience and are committed to continuing to communicate with you regarding the work and access to the dog park.
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FYI I have attached the topographical map of the dog park showing the project area. Note the bright green marking to the right of the map. This will be the temporary entrance road into the park. You will still be able to park in the same areas as usual. The work will not affect any of the gated areas of the dog park.

If you have any questions or concerns, please email me at [email protected]

Sincerely,
Roseanne Conrad, President
Blair County Dog Park Association

11/27/2024

Hey dog park members... I just came across this and thought I would share it for any of you quilters out there. I think it's absolutely spectacular!

Wishing you all, (and your pups),a very Happy Thanksgiving.

https://www.facebook.com/share/15MfqYcxuc/

Join the Dog Park Block of the Month to quilt a tribute to our furry friends! Monthly deliveries start in May 2025—reserve your spot today and bring a bit of canine charm to your sewing room!

06/08/2024

Thank you to whoever mowed the park today or yesterday. It looks beautiful! There was quite a crowd there tonight and I'm sure they all appreciated it as well.

Thanks to Bill and Karen for putting up some new message board on the large shed.

04/25/2024

SATURDAY -- The weather continues to be uncooperative for us at the dog park. Saturday was our planned annual Clean-Up Day. We had a board of director's meeting last night and we officially called it off due to forecast for rain and cold temperatures in the morning.
As members we plan to go out and start accomplishing tasks that need to be done as weather and time permits. We encourage everyone to do so. There are lots of weeds around the base of the fencing... Some of them are getting quite thick, and need to be removed. If you can help with that, it would be very much appreciated.
Also, many of the original birdhouses are rotting and not inhabitable for birds. If you can remove one or two and discard them for us, that would be helpful. We have five new bluebird houses to install.
Maintenance of the park is a huge issue and it's ongoing. If you can help in any way, please contact Bill Lewis and ask how you can assist. I will put his contact information on an email that I will send out to the membership today.
Thank you for being members of our beautiful dog park.

04/21/2024

https://www.mcheraldonline.com/story/2024/04/18/news/blair-county-dog-park-celebrates-its-13th-season/16653.html

The Blair County Dog Park Association is beginning its 13th season with a lot of reason to celebrate. The dog park, which is located off Agway Road in North Woodbury Township, offers 10.6 acres of scenic, rural land. The association, a non-profit, 501(c)3 organization, was recently able to purchase....

04/15/2024

NOTICE:
BILL HAS BEEN UNABLE TO MOW DUE TO THE GRASS BEING SO WET. HOPEFULLY TODAY AND TOMORROW WILL ALLOW FOR DRYING.
Bill asked that if you see him mowing do not go into that section. Use another section for your dogs until he's finished. Thank you for your cooperation.

04/14/2024

Our annual Dog Park Clean-Up Day is coming up fast. Saturday, April 27th beginning at 9:00 a.m.
We received five bluebird kits, 250,000 PA native wildflower seeds and other products from Thrivent Financial. They also gave us 15 t-shirts for the first 15 volunteers to come help out. Various sizes. Thank you to friend of the dog park, Debbie Norcross for making this happen.
We hope we have a good turnout from the membership.

04/09/2024

Bill just told me the park is now open. (Remember: 2024 lock box code is now in effect.)
You will notice we have a Porta-John there next to the new mower shed. Please use it as the bathroom is closed.

04/09/2024

MEMBERS.....READ ALL....Not just the first line, please.

The Dog Park will reopen today at 2:00pm. YAY! Finally.
Yes, good news BUT....we have just had A LOT of rain and the grounds are saturated creating the high probability of damage if members don't do their part to prevent it.

FIRST OF ALL...Wear skid resistant shoes or boots. Your safety is most important.

Secondly...drive into the park SLOWLY. Park in the grassy area to the right of the fencing. DO NOT DRIVE BEYOND THE SMALL SHED. There is to be no parking beyond the shed. See photo.

Once you are in the fenced in areas, take your dog away from the gates. This is where it is the most muddy and will get worse if you and your dog hang out there.

DO NOT permit your dog to run toward the gate and jump at other dogs who are entering. This creates tension and defensive behavior and could result in a dog fight. You could lose your park membership if you allow this behavior to happen.

Go enjoy this sunny day with your dog, but please be mindful and responsible. 🐾🐾🐾

04/01/2024

Rain. Rain. Rain.

Bill was out at the dog park today and it is extremely wet. Here are some photos he took of the main storage shed. He dug a trench to try to divert the water that's pooling under the shed. When the shed was installed we had several inches of shale laid under it in hopes of preventing this problem. This just shows how quickly water collects at the park.

Please do not go there until it has a chance to dry up. The weather is predicting rain throughout the week. We're so sorry but it's just Mother Nature at work.

Thank you Bill for all you do!

03/26/2024

Dear Members:
Although the grounds are still soft, we have made the decision to reopen the Dog Park this Thursday. This is a test run. You can help to keep it open by:

1). Upon entering the park, walk down into the park away from the gate. Do not congregate at the entrance.

2). Maintain control of your dog at all times. Do not allow your dog to rush the gate when a new dog enters. Not only does this churn up the mud at the entrance, it's just not fair to the dog coming in or the owner(s). This is a safety issue.

3). Remember to pick up after yourselves. Do not let toys, bowls, water jugs, etc. behind.

4). No dogs larger than 30 lbs. permitted in the small dog park. No small dogs under 30 lbs. are permitted in the large dog park. Children under 12 are not permitted in the fenced in areas of the dog park.

Thank you for your cooperation and have a wonderful time at the Dog Park with your best furry friend. 🐾💞

03/21/2024

So this negative view about dog parks is going around Facebook right now, with lots of comments backing it up.

Unfortunately, a lot of the dog parks in the country are municipal parks. These are usually open to anyone who wants to bring any type of dog. They don't need an application or a questionnaire to join. They don't have to pay a membership fee. The dogs owners do not have to present proof of vaccination. Males do not have to be neutered. There is no policing or rules to follow. They are basically a free-for-all. I have been to a few and they were, quite frankly, gross. Piles of p**p and even trash strewn around. I wouldn't take my dog to one of those parks either.

But our park is unique. Big and beautiful in a natural setting. Let's keep it wonderful. Let's all make sure to follow the rules. They were established to protect everyone. Let's all make sure to keep our dogs under control at all times. Not all dogs enjoy being jumped on by others or being chased. Let's all remember to take home things that we bring, including dog bowls, toys and water jugs. Let's all try to volunteer if even for an hour or so, every now and again.

Let's keep our beautiful, wonderful dog park the incredible exception that it is. 🐾❤️

03/19/2024

THIS IS A VERY GOOD VIDEO!
The basics of teaching your dog how to "recall", aka Come to you.

All dog park members must teach their dog(s) this important behavior. Not only will it provide a better and safer dog park experience, it can literally SAVE YOUR DOG'S LIFE.

How To Teach PERFECT RECALL - Teaching My Dog To Come Back To Me. Teaching your dog recall is one of the most important things you can do when training you d...

03/19/2024

ATTENTION MEMBERS:
The Dog Park is still closed due to muddy conditions at the gates due to dogs conglomerating and causing ruts and soft grounds due to rain and snow saturation. We will post here when the park will reopen. There will be a member update emailed to all members later today to explain this and what each member can do to help rectify this situation once the park reopens.

IMPORTANT...PLEASE READ:
All dogs must know basic obedience skills. The most important one is RECALL. Your dog must come to you when your call him/her. This is the reason dogs are running to the gate when a new dog comes in. This is a dangerous situation that can be avoided if everyone has control of their own dog.

Membership renewals are due by March 31st. A new key code will be in effect beginning April 1st. If you have not renewed your membership, you will not have access.

Spring Clean-Up Day is coming up in April. Please plan to give a couple hours of your time to help. We are ALL VOLUNTEERS and the more help we have, the quicker the work will get done. See attached poster.

03/14/2024

And THIS is why dogs are better than humans!
Some self important jerk broke into the main gate at the dog park, breaking the latch and requiring us to buy a new one.
The park was built by and is maintained by volunteers. We try hard to keep it beautiful and safe for all members. WE ARE NOT PAID. And then some idiot who feels entitled to something free does this. We are enraged and disgusted.
Idiot!!! We hope you and your dog had a good run. 🤬 (And by the way... we're not blaming your dog. We're quite sure he would have never done something like this.)

03/06/2024

The Dog Park website has been updated. If you would like to print an application to join, you can find it on the website. We would love to have you. The Spring Newsletter is also available as a downloadable file.

www.blaircountydogparkassociation.org

03/06/2024

URGENT MEMBERS:
If you have an email address listed on your membership materials, you should have gotten an email last evening from the dog park. Attached to the email was an application for your membership renewal, the spring newsletter, rules of the dog park and a flyer for our upcoming spring cleanup day. If you did not receive this, Please let us know by sending a message via our website.
Our new membership year begins April 1st. Your renewal must be received to access the park.

Also in the email is information about the muddy conditions at the park and how to prevent this. Please read all information email to you.

Thank you to everyone and have a wonderful day.

03/05/2024

NOTICE:
DUE TO EXCEPTIONALLY MUDDY CONDITIONS... THE DOG PARK WILL BE CLOSED (GATES LOCKED) UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE.
We have had a very strange winter here in Central Pennsylvania. The snow didn't have a chance to really freeze before it quickly thawed and melted along with rain that came throughout the winter. The already wetland nature of the dog park grounds became further impacted by all of that water. The weather is predicting several days of rain this week and more next week. Please do not drive down to the dog park as even the grounds on the outside of the fenced in areas are saturated. We need time to let everything dry out.
An email newsletter will be sent to the members later today to explain this and to announce some upcoming plans for spring.
Thank you for your patience and cooperation.