below please find a letter from an unhappy camper as well as our response to it

Please note, that our main concern is the safety and the well being of all of our campers.

We will always enforce our rules if we suspect that dogs are not playing well with others or

if we see indications that they are handled in an unsafe way by their owners.

We have seven off-leash  areas for dogs to play and we have made it a habit to ask campers with dogs that do not play well with others (outside their pack) to use an empty park instead of the main dog park areas.

 
Miek and Bridget,
 
First I want to apologize for becoming so upset with you yesterday, but when one of my family is unfairly maligned I tend to become defensive. Also I was very frustrated that I kept telling (my husband) to come up to Miek and I and he continued on into the park. When I did raise my voice and tell him to come NOW. Miek had to criticize that. It's none of his business how I talk with my husband! Besides, if I hadn't done that (my husband) would have gone right on in the dog park.
 
I would like to try to make the points I was not allowed to make yesterday.
 
B. is not an aggressive dog! Yes, she does bark a lot. That's something we're working on. And since she does have herder breeds in her she has a tendency to herd. This is only her idea of play. If another dog will run with her she is ecstatic. B. found us when she was a little over 6 months old. She was so malnourished she was losing her hair. She came into an established household of 5 dogs with no problems. The joy she finds in life could be a lesson to all of us. She has overcome great odds and still trusts people and animals, and really loves life.
 
R. was found under a house under construction when he was around 3 months old. He was so terrified of people that when he was brought into the vet clinic where I worked we named him S. because he just stayed in the back of the kennel and trembled. He also likes to tell the world what he's thinking by barking, but with his physical injuries and his size, he couldn't be aggressive even if he wanted to. And he doesn't want to be.
 
I. is a feral breed of dog that is naturally shy and withdrawn. She also has a bad history. Her mother was tied to a tree, allowed to breed, and deliver her pups that way. When the owners moved they released mom and her pups to defend for themselves. A neighbor was able to catch Ivy and brought her to the vet clinic where I worked. I. seldom leaves my side and makes no moves toward other dogs. I have taken her to a behavioral specialist at Carolina Veterinary Hospital. He says her actions are not a cause for concern.
 
S. also is a rescue. He was found wondering in the middle of the road when only a few months old. He's so old and crippled he has to be lifted in and out of the motorhome. He's deaf, so he can't hear us when we tell him not to bark. He can barely walk, much less be a threat to anyone else. To ban him is ridiculous!
 
I do not know of the 3 incidents to which you referred yesterday. I can only surmise. On Friday night a little before 10 we took our dogs to the park for a run before bed. There was a pack of golden retrievers coming out of the gate. They began to bark and the owners asked us to let them out before bringing our dogs in. This we did. As the goldens passed S. and B. they began barking back. Miek then came down and told us to keep them quite that it was quite time. Since your brochure listed quite time as beginning at 11, we didn't understand, but said nothing, let our dogs do their business, and took them back to the motorhome.
 
Bridget talked of the problem with (another dog). Yes, there was a problem there, but as I tried to tell you yesterday (the other dog) was the problem. Everytime she had an altercation with B. it was because (the other dog) had snarled at B.. What was B. supposed to do? Allow herself to be bitten?
 
Now for the incident at the pond. We took our dogs when no one else was there. They had been playing for a while when some other dogs came. B. did attempt to herd them in an effort to get them to play. The owner of the poodle got right down in B's face and screamed at her in such a way that I couldn't even understand what he was saying. If B. was aggressive, he'd have lost his face. Instead she just looked at him. Again, T. and I said nothing but immediately took our dogs and went to the creek.
 
I've been around dogs all my life. I assisted both my godfather and my father in raising beagles. My godfather raised field trial champions. My father breed on a smaller scale, but still had pedigreed dogs. I've also worked in a vet hospital. One thing I've learned. Dogs bark! It's one of the ways they communicate.
 
I think it was wrong of you to ban all of our dogs from the off leash areas. I also think the way in which you did it was designed to cause us maximum embarrassment. If there was a problem, why did you not come to our motorhome and talk to us privately? Why wait until we were in front of a number of people? I also asked T. what Bridget said to him Sunday morning. He said all she did was ask how we enjoyed Saturday night.
 
I find your campground has an elitist attitude. Dogs need to have a pedigree in their history, not a history of abuse and neglect to be welcome. Otherwise they seem to be thought a lower class animals. Our dogs have come a long way in their short lives. Bridget says my attitude is the reason my dogs have their trouble. I think my attitude has brought them as far as they have come.
 
We tried to get along as best we could. We corrected our dogs when they'd done nothing wrong, just to satisfy others. We tried to handle any problems quietly and not come running to you like a 4-year-old tattling to Mama. However, we paid the same as everyone else and were due the use of the facilities and the respect of you both, just as everyone else.
This respect we did not receive. I told you we would not be back. Bridget said she did not want us back. This is information I have passed along to our RV club president and friends to whom we have recommended you camp. Also to the vet where we distributed your brochures.
 
You have a good concept with Four Paw Kingdom, but you need to be open to diversity. Not everyone has a fancy rig and purebred dogs. (Personally, I find it unethical to continue to bring purebreds into this world just  for pets when there are so many unwanted dogs being euthanized because of lack of homes.) Perhaps it is your culture that causes you to be less open to differences. I think history supports this in Germany. But this is the US and differences are tolerated, and at times even embraced. Please open yourselves to the fact that some dogs have had a horrible background and have come a long, long ways. Just because someone has a fancy rig and purebred dogs and someone else has an older rig and mixed breeds does not make one right and the other wrong. Nor does it make one better that the other. You listened to the so called complaints. You should have listened to our response. You also should have given us the respect to have the conversation either at our motorhome or in your office. Not in front of everyone.
 
Sincerely,
B. S.

 

(names have been abbreviated or omitted for privacy concerns)

 

Dear Mrs. S.
Thank you for taking the time to write to us and explaining your situation.
We appreciate your comments and value the fact that you stand up for your family.
That being said, here's the campground owners side of the story.

We value and respect all of our guests and dogs. May they come in a Million Dollar
Motorhome or a $16.99 tent from WalMart. We don't care if dogs are pure breeds,
Mutts, all American Mixes, have won titles or were adopted from a shelter.

We had people bring dogs they found on the side of the road or had flown in first class
from whatever country.

All this does not matter to us and you implicating otherwise is not
only an insult to our business but to us personally.
(and to respond to your "cultural" implication, I'm an American
Citizen just as you are).

Here is what matters.

People being willing to follow and respect our rules.

When you signed in as our guests, you also signed a piece of paper that stated, that you agree
to follow the rules set forth to protect all of our campers,
When I approached you last night, I respectfully asked you that (for
the safety of your dogs and all others) you please use any other of
our seven dog parks to avoid a confrontation between your dogs and
others, That's when you decided to break that promise to respect our
rules and started a shouting match between yourself, your husband, me
and the rest of the campground.

This behavior showed me that (regardless of the cause) you are not
willing to accept my request and therefore you are not willing to
abide by the rules that have been put into effect for the safety of
all of our guests.

It's that simple. It has nothing to do with who you are, where you are
coming from, how old your RV is, where you've got your dogs or what
cultural differences you might perceive.

It's all about you reacting to my request. And since you point out
that respect is important to you, you will understand, that I did not
see that respect towards me as the owner of this campground reflected
in your response.

We thank you for your support in the past and wish you all the best
for your future travels with your canine family.

Respectfully

Meik Bartoschek