This survey of residents of Marin County, San Francisco County, Alameda County, and San Mateo County focused on residents’ opinions concerning companion animal management regulations in parklands administered by Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA).

Current NPS Leash Regulations

• For the first set of questions, respondents were read the statement, “Current NPS regulations allow for walking dogs on-leash at most GGNRA sites AND prohibit any off-leash dog walking,” and asked if they support or oppose this current regulation. Nearly three-quarters of all respondents from the four-county region (71%) support the current dog walking regulation and about one-quarter (23%) opposes the current regulation. The population of respondents “strongly supporting” the current regulation (45%) is almost four times as large as the population of respondents “strongly opposed” to the current regulation (12%).
• In the second set of questions, respondents were asked about their attitudes toward imposing additional limits to on-leash dog walking in the GGNRA. One-third of residents (33%) want to further limit the number of sites in which on-leash dog walking is allowed, with 19% “strongly in favor” of this regulation change and 14% “somewhat in favor” of this change. A much larger group opposes reducing the number of sites available for on-leash dog walking. Over half of respondents (55%) do not want to see a reduction in the number of sites where on-leash dog walking is allowed; 27% “somewhat oppose” this change and 28% “strongly oppose” further limitations.
• The third set of questions asked respondents whether they support allowing dogs off-leash in the GGNRA. 40% of respondents from the four-county area say they support allowing dogs off-leash. 17% of all respondents say they “strongly support” off- leash dog walking and almost one-quarter (23%) of respondents say they “somewhat support” off-leash dog walking. Just over half of respondents oppose off-leash dog walking (53%); 17% “somewhat oppose” off-leash dog walking and 36% “strongly oppose” off-leash dog walking in GGNRA sites. Dog owners and non-owners differ significantly on this issue. Just over one-half of dog owners (51%) say they support off-leash dog walking in GGNRA sites while 45 percent oppose off-leash dog walking in GGNRA sites. 35% of non-owners support off-leash dog walking in GGNRA sites and 56% oppose it.

Other Findings

• Virtually all respondents (96%) have visited at least one GGNRA site in their lifetime and three quarters of respondents (74%) visited at least one GGNRA site within the last year.
• 22% of respondents throughout the four-county area say they own or care for one dog and 7% own or care for more than one dog.
• Half of dog-owning respondents (50%, or 14% of all respondents) say they have walked their dog(s) in a GGNRA site.
• Over half of visitors living in the four-county region (52%) say they have seen a dog off-leash at a GGNRA park site (39% have not seen a dog off-leash, 9% were unsure).
• 27% of visitors who have seen dogs off-leash report that off-leash dogs added to their experience and 22% say dogs off-leash detracted from their experience.
• Nearly half of visitors who have seen dogs off-leash in a GGNRA site (49%) believe dogs off-leash had no impact on their experience.
• Dog owners who have visited a GGNRA site and have seen a dog off-leash are more likely to view their interaction with off-leash dogs as adding to their experience than non-owners in the same population subset (37% vs. 23%).
• Non-dog owners are three times more likely than dog owners in this population subset to believe that off-leash dogs detracted from their experience in a GGNRA park site (28% vs. 9%). Dog owners are more likely than respondents without dogs to be familiar with leash laws (63% vs. 46%, respectively, with 35% of dog owners and 52% of those without dogs unfamiliar with the regulations).
• Residents who visit GGNRA sites frequently are much more likely to be familiar with leash laws than those who don’t visit or have visitor infrequently. 62% of high visitation residents report being familiar with current regulations, compared with 47% of medium visitation residents, 40% of low visitation residents and 18% of non-visitors.
• One-third of residents (33%) want to further limit the number of sites in which on-leash dog walking is allowed, with 19% “strongly in favor” of this regulation change and 14% “somewhat in favor” of this change. A much larger group opposes reducing the number of sites available for on-leash dog walking.