I quite agree with you Lizzie a couple of our local trust reserves ban then because of ground nesting birds. There is also a big push from the farming community to have dogs on leads around livestock as it is lambing time

Thanks Pete and Robbo, nature reserves are somewhere that wildlife should expect minimal disturbance and it is upsetting to see owners who don’t seem to recognise what an impact a dog off a lead can have.

I visit lots and lots of nature reserves nearby.  at Saintbridge levelimg pond there only allows dogs of lead if they behave and they can control them. One day I was enjoying watching some fluffy voles playimg around on the bank and then a dog  ran really fast over to them and they legged it and hid. The dog sniffed  around and tryed to chase any had frozen stiff and not found a place to  hide yet.  He called the dog 3 or 4 times and then the dog went back to him. Though the dog went back to him. It did scare the voles away . I didn’t manage to get any pictures and it did partly ruin my time there that day cause They were haveing lots of fun aswell.  So dogs  can cause disturbance

theres also a common called selsley common in the summer they get skylark that are protected and they do a display to attract females. They nest in the ground. There’s a path meant to be taken to avoid wall king through the grass where the skylark are nesting.  A lot of people have dogs on the lead but some people have dogs off lead and people don’t allways stick to the path  to not disturb the skylark. and some people also go off path and run around there in the long grass in the very part the skylarks are advertising and paracuteimg down to. I think that everyone should keep there dogs on lead there during the season the skylarks are advertising and them have them off lead when there not nesting there. 

I also think that dogs should be kept on leads at nature reserves. 

From 2005 to 2013 Chris and myself were volunteer rangers in Nidderdale AONB and part of our work was to check on loose dogs as on some moors they were banned under the Open Access laws if the landowner applied for a ban. Trying to explain the reasoning behind it was like hitting our heads against a brick wall. At Spring sheep were sometimes worried d by loose running dogs and lost the lambs. In one year there were so many cases of sheep worrying by dogs one farmer had to shoot a dog. I think he was upset by this more than anyone at having to do this. I'm afraid some people think such rules do not apply to them and we often got verbal abuse when asking dog owners to put their dog on a leash and just had to take it

What reserves are you talking about! RSPB reserves? RSPB reserves don’t normally allow Dogs on there reserves in England and Wales unless there are public footpaths, registered guide dogs etc. The law is different in Scotland. No dogs are allowed into any hides at RSPP reserves, except registered guide dogs. Unless you want to ban owners with guide dogs which give certain individuals there independence. Public footpaths are what they are: Public Footpaths.! Public Footpaths can be closed for short periods for example when rare nesting birds or other wildlife which could easily disturbed by anyone walking along such a footpath. But only when such birds are nesting or other rare wildlife. The list of RSPB reserves in England and Wales confirms thar is the case at most RSPB reserves.. Unless you are looking at reserves owned by other wildlife organisations in the UK. But what you say is definitely not the case in England and Wales at most RSPB reserves. Anyone can check what I say is correct at most RSPB reserves in England and Wales is correct in what I say..

As a former dog owner, it riles me to see dogs running riot, most are untrained, or barely trained, and even worse, those extending  leads should be banned.

They're a good training aid when first introduced, but never really saw the light of day as a training aid, just an idle dog walkers lead to allow the dog to run amok, sometimes out in to the road risking the dogs life, cyclists and damage to legitimate motorists.

My dogs were obedience trained and always on a proper short lead when out.

You can see both dogs had leads on, the leads were anchored, because of the training they had, they were happy to relax and therefore no taut dog  leads....

BTW, the phot was taken some 30+ years ago, when we had sun.....  LOL

Ian, there are a lot of reserves that are not under RSPB control such as local Wildlife Trusts. Because in most cases entry is free,as it should be in my opinion, they are a favourite for dog walkers and very rarely full time staffed. Most dog owners are great and obey the rules but it only takes one idiot to spoil your day

My local RSPB reserve is public ground with public footpaths and a bridalway managed by the RSPB, and there are dog walkers who let their dogs  run wild, and/or allow these annoying extending leads to unreel and the dog(s) run amok off the paths.

The RSPB reserve I visited allowed dogs in but only on leads, so this must have a public footpath running though it and absolutely must allow access to all.. Everyone one should be able to enjoy reserves, but with a greater understanding of WHY a dog off a lead could cause a problem. For many people a dog is a companion and essential and many are responsible but maybe as mentioned volunteers could help at reserves where dogs have access to explain and educate the owners who keep leads off. This hopefully means a welcome to as many people as possible and protection for our wildlife.