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Thread: No Dogs Allowed!

  1. #1

    No Dogs Allowed!

    Just got back from a hike/backpack up to the Pfeifferhorn. Loaded up all my gear and my dogs in my truck like I always do, and headed from Ogden down to the trailhead. As soon as I got there I was shocked to find out that all of Salt Lake County watershed is off limits to dogs. How long has this been the case? Am I the only one that thinks this is absolutely stupid and ridiculous? What harm is a dog going to do to the watershed? Are we going to ban all deer, moose and elk from the mountains as well because the horrible feces and urine they leave in our mountains?

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  3. #2
    Been that way since at least 94 when I started hiking that area... And domestic dog poop has some potential nasties that the wild animals poop does not have due to their living in close proximity to other animals and humans.


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    Tacoma Said - If Scott he asks you to go on a hike, ask careful questions like "Is it going to be on a trail?" "What are the chances it will kill me?" etc. Maybe "Will there be sack-biting ants along the way?"

  4. #3
    How long has this been the case?
    At least 40 years now, probably a lot longer. Just a guess, but it probably correlates with the grazing bans dating back in the 1930's.

    What harm is a dog going to do to the watershed? Are we going to ban all deer, moose and elk from the mountains as well because the horrible feces and urine they leave in our mountains?
    Since wild animals don't live with humans nor carry the same bacteria, etc. they are much likely to spread diseases affecting humans.
    Utah is a very special and unique place. There is no where else like it on earth. Please take care of it and keep the remaining wild areas in pristine condition. The world will be a better place if you do.

  5. #4
    The laws are lame, but I guess people can't clean up after their dogs?


  6. #5
    (double post)
    Utah is a very special and unique place. There is no where else like it on earth. Please take care of it and keep the remaining wild areas in pristine condition. The world will be a better place if you do.

  7. #6
    I guess people can't clean up after their dogs?
    True. Mill Creek does get pretty disgusting, especially in the winter/early spring.

    Anyway, you can still climb the Pfeifferhorn with a dog, just use another route. There are several routes up the Pfeifferhorn that don't involve Little Cottonwood Canyon.

    Whatever the route though, I don't know if the
    Pfeifferhorn is a dog friendly hike, at least for most dogs. It has scrambling regardless of the route.
    Utah is a very special and unique place. There is no where else like it on earth. Please take care of it and keep the remaining wild areas in pristine condition. The world will be a better place if you do.

  8. #7
    Herbivores have a totally different manure make up than dogs and people. That's why you see farmers spreading manure in fields or home owners into their gardens to help plants grow. But we avoid using dog or human waste in anything we are going to eat. Even the BioMass we get from the sewer plant that has been composted and treated is used for ornamental plantings and not food gardens. You just don't have the pathogens in horse/cow manure than you do in waste from carnivores.

  9. #8
    I'm sorry, but I still have a hard time seeing dog waste as a legitimate concern to the watershed. If you take the total area of the watershed that is trail accessible I would think it would make up maybe 1% of the total landmass of the watershed. I have a hard time seeing that one percent being significant enough to be a threat to the watershed. If so, why wouldn't the rest of Utah have water issues when they are dog friendly in the mountains? Ogden, where I am from, is dog friendly in the surrounding mountains and a few years back I recall hearing that North Ogden was voted best tasting drinking water in the state of Utah.

  10. #9
    If so, why wouldn't the rest of Utah have water issues when they are dog friendly in the mountains?


    The rest of Utah isn't as heavily populated as the Salt Lake Valley (although Odgen and Provo areas are getting up there). Big and Little Cottonwoods Canyons/Salt Lake County aren't the only places in Utah with watershed restrictions either. Also, it's not only dogs, but swimming or wading in water is also illegal in those canyons.

    Also, total landmass isn't the issue, but what gets in the water.

    Many watersheds in neighboring states actually ban not only dogs, but people too.

    As you point out though, most of the state is open to dogs. Luckily there are plenty of places to go if you have your dog. As mentioned, you can even still climb the
    Pfeifferhorn from other directions with one.

    Personally I have no issue with dogs at all as long as they aren't aggressive and owners clean up after them, but I'm willing to bet that the law about dogs in Big and Little Cottonwood isn't going to go away anytime soon. It's been that way for decades and is enforced fairly strictly.

    PS, in this case, what ever happened to the trip? Did you go somewhere else, just go home, or ...?
    Utah is a very special and unique place. There is no where else like it on earth. Please take care of it and keep the remaining wild areas in pristine condition. The world will be a better place if you do.

  11. #10
    Quote Originally Posted by ahansen60 View Post
    I'm sorry, but I still have a hard time seeing dog waste as a legitimate concern to the watershed. If you take the total area of the watershed that is trail accessible I would think it would make up maybe 1% of the total landmass of the watershed. I have a hard time seeing that one percent being significant enough to be a threat to the watershed. If so, why wouldn't the rest of Utah have water issues when they are dog friendly in the mountains? Ogden, where I am from, is dog friendly in the surrounding mountains and a few years back I recall hearing that North Ogden was voted best tasting drinking water in the state of Utah.
    As North Ogden gets its drinking water from wells and springs IE groundwater sources your argument about Ogdens dog friendly mountains does not hold water as the area in question uses surface water not groundwater.
    Tacoma Said - If Scott he asks you to go on a hike, ask careful questions like "Is it going to be on a trail?" "What are the chances it will kill me?" etc. Maybe "Will there be sack-biting ants along the way?"

  12. #11
    I can understand your arguments, but I still don't think it is significant enough of a threat to warrant restricting dogs from the mountains. Wading and swimming I can understand somewhat, due to the fact that it is direct contamination of the water and not just contamination of the land the water runs over. But I would be willing to bet if you let dogs run free all over the mountains that we would not see any significant increase in drinking water contamination. Even on the off chance that we did see an increase I would be more than willing to pay an increase in taxes for better water filtration and monitoring. It's worth it to me. Dogs were not meant to be cooped up in a house or yard. They need that time to go run free and enjoy the trails just as much as I need it from time to time. And before someone says it, no, just taking your dog to a park does not suffice.

  13. #12
    Isn't a great deal of Ogden's drinking water supplied from Pineview reservoir?

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  14. #13
    Yes. There is a water treatment facility just below the dam.

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  15. #14
    Quote Originally Posted by Sombeech View Post
    Isn't a great deal of Ogden's drinking water supplied from Pineview reservoir?

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    We are talking about North Ogden as the OP stated.. Not ogden proper http://northogd.ipower.com/wp/wp-con...y-report-3.pdf


    Also what is the drainage area for Pineview Res.. mostly NOT the mountainous area around Ogden but further back...

    In the end just because the people of Ogden want to drink water that is potentially contaminated with dog feces doesn't mean that the People of salt Lake and the surrounding area want to enjoy the same..
    Tacoma Said - If Scott he asks you to go on a hike, ask careful questions like "Is it going to be on a trail?" "What are the chances it will kill me?" etc. Maybe "Will there be sack-biting ants along the way?"

  16. #15
    You should come up to Ogden some time and try some of our feces water. You might like it. :)

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  17. #16
    Humans animals sometimes lead to unintended consequences. Domestic sheep are responsible for a disease that is wiping out native Bighorns, and there is no fix.

  18. #17
    People and animals are pooping, peeing and puking in pineview everyday, but they have this new technology called water treatment.

    Ask the astronauts what they think of drinking recycled liquids.

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  19. #18
    Quote Originally Posted by ahansen60 View Post
    I can understand your arguments, but I still don't think it is significant enough of a threat to warrant restricting dogs from the mountains....Even on the off chance that we did see an increase I would be more than willing to pay an increase in taxes for better water filtration and monitoring. It's worth it to me.
    I don't think most of us would care to have our taxes increase...

    Being a local to the canyons here in SLC, I'll have to admit I like that at least BCC and LCC have dog restrictions. I like dogs, grew up with them, but, most owners don't train their dogs to behave reasonably around people.

    I hike in the local canyons all the time (multiple times a week). Mill Creek included. So, I get dog/people interactions all the time. Anyhoo...

    Had a friend who worked for EBMUD as a water guy. He could kinda explain how hard it was to treat contaminated water. We chatted a fair bit about SLC's watershed policy. Was interesting.

    Anyhoo...the watershed here in the Wasatch supplies a fairly large population. Google "Salt Lake watershed dogs" and see how much info is available.

    http://www.slcgov.com/sites/default/...12_14_2010.pdf

    http://cf9.slco.org/watershed/pdfWLi...ry19471997.pdf

    I think that since its become common for folks to pick up their dogs poo...that, there's been a noticable difference in places like Mill Creek and Tanner's Park.



    SLC tap water is the best...ha ha:

    By Mike Celizic TODAY contributor

    updated 7/20/2007 11:39:22 AM ET 2007-07-20T15:39:22

    Its namesake lake may be saltier than the ocean, but, according to two wine-tasting experts, Salt Lake City

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  21. #19
    Quote Originally Posted by ahansen60 View Post
    I'm sorry, but I still have a hard time seeing dog waste as a legitimate concern to the watershed. If you take the total area of the watershed that is trail accessible I would think it would make up maybe 1% of the total landmass of the watershed. I have a hard time seeing that one percent being significant enough to be a threat to the watershed. If so, why wouldn't the rest of Utah have water issues when they are dog friendly in the mountains? Ogden, where I am from, is dog friendly in the surrounding mountains and a few years back I recall hearing that North Ogden was voted best tasting drinking water in the state of Utah.
    But just a little poop in the pudding makes the whole pudding poopy.

  22. #20
    I love poopy pudding. Don't you? ;)

    If you love the taste of Salt Lake County's water then you must be ok with not just a little poop, but a lot of poop, with all the deer, elk, moose and various other critters up there. I'm perfectly ok with it. Along with dogs, because I don't buy the argument that dog feces is worse than other animals.

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