Late-summer heat has no effect on the visitors at Paws Park, bless 'em. Buddy, a brown-and-white boxer, is there as usual, greeting newcomers and saying goodbye to those leaving. Small, sassy Bear, distinguished by his curly tail and overgrown attitude, good-humoredly harasses dogs twice his size. Many are splashing in the water-filled kiddie pools at the park's eastern end. A regal Saint Bernard lies quietly in the ample shade while his person lounges on a wooden bench and checks phone messages. A speckled puppy clumsily trots alongside anyone walking by, yapping every step of the way. A shaggy black-and-cream terrier bounds up and down an agility ramp built and donated by a local Eagle Scout.
Loosed from their tethers, the lucky dogs who frequent this popular site, part of the city of Little Rock's Murray Park, don't seem to be complaining about 90-degree temperatures. They're too busy zooming off to play with their pals in an exuberant dance involving canines of all sizes, shapes, breeds, colors and combinations. One of the main topics among their accompanying humans is the detangling of the often curious lineages in this magnificent melting pot.
The only critters that aren't having a good time are the squirrels. By now, they've learned to stay well above the fray on the upper branches of the fenced park's many trees.
Paws Park, which opened May 22, 2004, is the place to be on weekend afternoons. It's there because Debbie Milam and other dog-loving volunteers, with the guidance of the city's then-parks and recreation director Bryan Day and city manager Bruce Moore, raised the money to design and build it.
There are other dog places: Unleashed, opened in 2013 in Little Rock's MacArthur Park, and more in Maumelle, North Little Rock, Sherwood, Jacksonville, and Conway. Not only do they give our canine companions a place to run and play and roll in the dirt and act like dogs, but these cheerful spaces foster a vital sense of community wherever they're found.
Horror stories about abuse of pets, like one that made the news last week, are grim reminders of how cruel humans can be. But a visit to Paws Park, especially in the waning days of summer, restores faith in the joyful companionship of man and dog.
Editorial on 09/01/2015