Letter: Please Pick Up After Your Dog

The following is a letter by Jim and Pam Sherry:

Spring is an important season for our family, given our involvement in Stoneham Soccer Club – we are both on the Board and our children are participants in the program.

This winter was harsh, and Stoneham Soccer Club has been watching and waiting for the snow to melt at Cerrone Park/Broadway Field so we can prepare the fields the best we can for the season. Unfortunately, the melting snow is revealing a disrespectful side of some in our community – a minefield of dog feces everywhere, as well as serious damage from dogs digging holes in the turf. The Soccer Club provides funding for all of the landscaping at Cerrone Park, as well as funds all repairs to the field. Last Fall the Town of Stoneham posted several, blue “No Pets Allowed” signs near the entrance. These do not, however, appear to be working.

Yes, it is unfortunate that Stoneham, does not have an official dog park. However, it is more unfortunate that people disregard the “No Pets” signs and, the law that requires owners to pick up after their pets. There are piles of dog ‘stuff’ everywhere in our community. No, the snow does not make the stuff mysteriously disappear. It stays, and now our soccer field – where hundreds of children and family members spend their time during the season – is filled with what we think is an embarrassing representation of dog owners. Do people really think its ok to leave toxic waste on a youth athletic field? And no, dog poo is not considered to be organic fertilizer.

Please know this is not a complaint against dogs – we love dogs and have two of our own. We hope that others in the community please follow the law, or at least use some consideration for the safety of our children, and pick up after your pet (and dispose of bags properly or take them with you).

Jim and Pam Sherry