When Shay moved to the city into a home without a yard, she was terrified. How were her poor pups going to get their crazies out? And more importantly, were they going to drive her bonkers? Fortunately, the city has quite a few dog friendly areas. While many are barely bigger than a postage stamp, there are a few good ones. Our favorites are:
- Belmont Harbor Dog Beach: This is our favorite dog area in the city. It’s a fenced off dog beach at the north end of Belmont Harbor where the dogs can run in the sand or play in the water. It’s surrounded by a high wall/fence on 2 sides so it’s impossible for them to get out and generally only has 5 – 15 dogs at any given time.
- Montrose Dog Beach: This dog beach/park is enormous at almost 4 acres with plenty of room for dogs to play and swim. Because of it’s size it attracts a LOT of dogs and probably averages 50 dogs at any time on a normal day.
- Wiggly Field (also called Noethling Playlot Park). It’s not the biggest park, but it has three different sections. One for regular play, a separate dog run if your dog is having a bad day and needs a timeout or you’re working on special training and an agility area. It’s next to the El so if your dog gets freaked out by loud noises it might not be the best choice for you.
- Puptown (also called Margate Park). Spacious park in the Uptown neighborhood.
- For a special treat we drive to the Beck Lake Dog Area which is a 26 acre off leash dog park in Glenview (north of O’Hare). It’s about a 40 minute drive from our place in Lakeview, but a great option on the weekend when our dogs just need to get out and run. You MUST have an annual permit though to visit this park.
For a full list of dog parks in the city, visit The Chicago Park District
Don’t forget to get your required Dog Friendly Area Permit and Tag from your veterinarian
Any others you think should be included on the list of Best Dog Parks in Chicago?
Living in Chicago With a Dog and No Yard Yikes!
