dog hit by car near Peckham Rye

[Kathryn Almond]

I've emailed my local councillor, Maggie Browning.

[se22cat]

Really sad to read about what happened to Flo; cannot imagine how distressing that would have been for you. Heartwarming to hear about the immediate help and support you had and that they are on the way to recovery. Will also contact the local councilor about the gate.

[alice]

Just had an unpleasant pm from ED bird.

[alice]

ED why not make it public.

[J27]

Thanks KA and SE22cat. I'll contact her too.

[Treehugger2]

So glad that Flo is making a recovery, but it sounds quite a serious op. I recall her as a lovely fast runner, will she be able to get back to that? Fully support making that gate self-closing, it's a real worry for dogs and children.

[peckhamside]

Sorry to hear about the distress to dog and owner but it there a learning point here about keeping dogs under control? I am a cyclist and a dog running in the road could have caused serious injury if it had collided with a cyclist. My observation is dogs have NO sense re other moving things.

[Jules-and-Boo]

are you seriously putting that forward? you're more concerned about yourself because the dog was not under control?

The issue really is the gate that is open.

We need to look after each other, not berate them for an accident.

I'd seen the gate before but one expects parks to be safe.

[J27]

I totally agree that dogs should be under control, and in the street any responsible owner will keep their dog on a lead. The problem is that in a park, when off the lead, a dog can suddenly run off, if the temptation is strong enough (e.g. food - see my previous post), or if it is being chased or has been frightened by something. These things do happen, and while there are some dogs who have perfect recall, and will always come back on command in any situation, there are some who - occasionally - just will not. In a situation like this, a dog can suddenly run away from the middle of the park, where it had been playing safely, and out of an open gate into the road. I have seen it happen on more than one occasion. Dogs can run very fast, and there are times when an owner can do nothing to stop it. It is these situations where keeping the gate closed would minimise the risk to others - drivers, cyclists and pedestrians.