Dog walking landscapes

The emergence of private dog walking fields in the UK reflects a growing trend in response to changing societal attitudes towards human-canine relationships, urbanisation, diversification in the use of farmland, and the desire for secure, controlled environments for dogs to exercise and socialise. While the concept of spaces for dog recreation has a long history, the formalisation and commercialisation of private dog fields has gained significant traction in the last decade with the number of fields estimated to have increased from a few hundred to around 1,200.

This chapter explores how private dog fields represent a shift in anthropocentric landscape design, creating managed landscapes that cater specifically to the needs of dogs and their humans. These landscapes blend natural elements with human-designed features such as secure fencing and ‘poo bins’, fusing natural and artificial elements in the creation of purpose-driven spaces that are actively designed, managed and monetised as commercial ventures. Private dog parks are a form of neoliberal spatial reappropriation whereby areas previously designated for conventional land uses- often farmland- are repurposed to cater for explicitly private activities. At the same time, these spaces can centralise dog agency and offer an opportunity for some, particularly reactive dogs or banned breeds, to go ‘off-lead’, enabling them to make choices, navigate, and interact with greater levels of autonomy than would otherwise be possible in public or common spaces. Accompanied by photographs that document and explore the use of a private dog field over the course of a year, this chapter combines a critical animal studies analysis of private dog fields with an account of their use. The chapter concludes with an exploration of the ways in which private dog fields are reshaping the emotional and experiential aspects of the landscape through the lens of human-canine relationships.