Griffith Park Dog Park

Three stars because this place is great on weekdays, especially in the mornings. Usually regulars with a few newcomers. My dog is always excited to see his buddies. The weekends however are a nightmare. Lots of people bringing unsocialized or aggressive dogs with no idea how to read dog behavior (theirs or others). No more weekends after seeing my dog physically shoved away from another dog for being «aggressive» when he tried to initiate play. Had someone flat out tell me they were bringing their scared dog to the park to socialize them, which any trainer or behaviorist will tell you is a horrible idea.
Bottom line: weekday mornings are great, avoid like the plague on weekends.

Whenever we go on a Saturday morning, there are maybe 2 – 3 other dogs there, usually siblings who just play amongst themselves. It is dusty and has minimal shaded or seating areas, so maybe that drives dog owners away? The problem with this place is that there needs to be a critical mass of regular dog visitors in order to make it reliably successful, and perhaps there should be design improvements to reach that goal. I think the play areas are too large, and sometimes nudging people and dogs to be a bit nearer to each other (while still allowing for good running space) would make it feel more communal and less like an open desert.

Solid dog park for those who live close by, but I do have to say there are better dog parks around if you are willing to drive a little further. My wife and live about 5 minutes away from the park and have been here often. Our experiences have always been solid but we never found this place anything special. The people who tend to frequent this park seem to be those with larger dogs as we don’t see as many smaller dogs. The park never seems to get all too crowded… so if you are the type who wants to keep to yourself and play fetch in your own area this is probably a good bet for you. For us, we’ve been trying to socialize our dog more so we would prefer a little more traffic. Also in regards to upkeep, Griffith Park doesn’t seem as well kept as other parks we go to and in addition there are no lights at the park so once the sun starts to go down it gets dark fast. It’s not a place you can really go to afterwork outside of summer with its bright into 7−8pm.

The Griffith Park Dog Park is a great bet! I like the large area — while it’s mainly dirt, there are some sparse grass patches, trees, tables, and a fountain or two — amenities I appreciate. There are two areas, one for large dogs and one for small/​timid dogs. I’ve only used the large dog side, and have been pretty impressed with the crowd. The people and dogs are both very calm and friendly (for the most part). It might sound hokey, but I have found my dog is on much better behavior when surrounded by other dogs with calm «energy» like this! Furthermore, it’s pretty clean — most owners seem to be good about picking up after their dogs, and I haven’t seen much litter in the area at all.
The only downside is the location — while it’s in Griffith Park, it’s all the way up on the north end, so it can end up being a 20 minute drive from Los Feliz. Also, it is literally right next to the freeway, so you have all of the sounds and smells from passing traffic.
All said and done, we’ve made this our home dog park — worth the drive.

I love this dog park! There is a large area for both big dogs and large area for small or timid dogs, too. People are friendly, there are at least 2 water stations with bowls and there’s parking AND an outhouse! Large trees for shade… it really can’t get any better than this.

GOOD PARK! My dog loves it. Perfectly fine. People-​wise it’s socially mellow and friendly (no cliques, no weirdos, no «this is my park» people). Big, open, has all the necessities.
I don’t understand complaints of a dog park being dusty. It’s dusty. I know I’m going to get dirty when I go to the dog park. A pristine lawn for my pup would be ideal, but that’s not what I expect to find at any free, city dog park.
PROS
* Huge open lot. Great for dogs who want to really open up and RUN.
* 4 – 5 giant shade trees, chairs and benches.
* Lots of friendly (but not weird), responsible regulars who are polite and get how dogs socialize. Welcoming to newcomers. Expect your dog to play with others. People are pretty good about watching their dogs and stepping in if necessary. (There’s are always exceptions, of course.)
* Several trash cans, plenty of poop scoops.
* Two water spigots with large dishes.
* Two separate entrances. If one is overly active, I enter by the far corner.
* Timid side is really clean, lots of very pretty flowering trees.
* Once you know where it is (dead end after you turn left from Zoo Drive exit) it’s easy to get to, parking is never a problem.
CONS
* Doesn’t appear to be regularly maintained. It would be nice if they’d hose down the benches and chairs. They’re covered in urine.
* No grass. Just packed dirt. (Wood chips have been removed.)
* Directly next to the 5. Not in a sexy location (if that matters to you). If cars make your dog anxious, be aware.
There is a sprinkler system installed, but I’ve been told it’s never seen in use. It would be really nice if they’d make an effort to bring back some of the grass.
Not a scenester dog park, but that’s what I love about it. My dog LOVES IT and that’s what counts!

What a good time? Great dogs in this park

I like this park because it’s only minutes from my house. Like most dog parks, there is a section for larger dogs and smaller/​timid dogs. It is near the 134, so you’ll hear the traffic, but I usually don’t notice.
It’s all dirt which makes spotting poo a lot easier, but because it is all dirt, I end up having to give my dog more baths. Right now, the city has fenced off about ¹⁄₃ of the park to attempt to grow grass.
During the summer, there were a lot of gnats and flying bugs — it was annoying, but not bothersome enough to not come to the park. There are a few benches, plenty of chairs, and three cement bench/​tables to sit at. Plenty of balls laying around in case you forget to bring a toy for your dog.
The people here are friendly, and there have only been a handful of times where the dogs get a bit too rowdy, but the owners are usually good about stepping in.

Today was our first day taking our dogs to a «dog park». Right away we were welcomed by some fellow humans with great tips for first timers! The dog park was clean and there is plenty of parking. I am looking forward to going back for play dates with our new found friends!

This place is a total hit-​or-​miss as far as the mix of dogs go, but that goes for most dogparks. There are two sides for a reason, small dogs on one side, large dogs on the other. Respect the rules, they are in place for the safety of your dogs. Drive up and check out the energy of the dogpark before you step inside, it will be different at different times of days. If you come in the morning to mid afternoon hours, there will most likely be «dogwalkers» and I say that with quotes because they clearly do not walk their dogs. They just sit there on their cell phones and unload 15 – 30 dogs with little supervision. That just never turns out well. Some days it’s more rough and tumble, but if you hit it at the right time, closer to dusk, it is peaceful, serene, and lovely
Be forewarned; there is very little grass here and the vast majority of it is dirt. There are however, ample water spots for hydrating your pooch, and it’s fairly spacious so you can move around and find a quiet spot to toss the ball or chat with other like-​minded owners.

I liked this dog park until I realized there was more than one locally.
I’ve witnessed three separate dog fights at least one required the dog to get stitches. There always seems to be some kind of drama whether it’s between the dogs or the people. It’s a decent enough size but no larger (and probably much smaller) than the three other LA dog parks I’ve been to. No grass, *really* strong urine smell and bordering a loud, busy freeway.
There isn’t any shade on a hot day and every seating area is totally caked in urine.
Off-​leash dog parks are awesome but this one really doesn’t do the concept any justice. If you really can’t travel to a better park it’s better than nothing but I’d recommend just going hiking in Griffith Park instead which is actually quite beautiful.

DONT WASTE YOUR TIME HERE.
Wow, i planned a whole picnic with my ipad and everything ready for this place to be great. I assumed since it was in Griffith Park it had to be somewhat nice. Wow was I wrong. Its literally so close to the freeway that debris was flying through it. It was empty except for two creepy guys and their rattty dogs. There was poop EVERYWHERE, which meant the flys were in full force as well. My dog loves to play ball, however the dirt is so deep that it created a mini dust bowl when she ran so even she stopped after only a few throws.
This is such a shame. it just goes to show you how little it takes for people that DONT like dogs to prevent dog parks. there are literally hundreds of acres of unused and beautiful areas in griffith park. All it would take was converting over one of the many many many many many picnic areas.
DONT WASTE YOUR TIME HERE.

I started going to the Whitnall dog park but I really didn’t like it. People were too busy socializing to pay attention to their dogs and my dogs just didn’t find any dogs they really liked.
We tried out the Griffith Park dog park and my dogs LOVED it! We try to go 3 – 4 times a week. We prefer the late afternoon and early evenings. Everyone is nice and my dogs have met many new doggie friends. For the most part, people clean up after their dogs and keep an eye on them.
When its hot out, it is actually pleasant at the park although as someone mentioned, there are alot of gnats.
Highly recommended!

Not the best of dog parks but to be honest my dog likes any park. Its near a freeway so you get the noise pollution from the freeway. If your dog is scared of cars this might not be a good place for him or her.
The people & dogs I have met here have all been nice. They have trash cans and poop pick up. Of all the dog parks in Los Angeles, I would say that its just OK. Not the worst, but nothing to go out of the way for. Definitely a convenience place especially if you live or work in the area.

GREAT OPEN DOG PARK!
My monsters are huge, so bringing all four of them here… is quite a hassle, but very fun. With all the open space they have, what more does a dog lover want.
Perfect place to train your dog, great people around all the time, and clean open atmosphere, which dogs wont get hurt playing or get bugs on.
I do recommend dog lovers to bring their pet here, mainly if their as big as mine are. You would usually find great people to talk to while your dog get tired from running around so much!
B+
4 Stars

A great dane ran into me while racing around this park. I dislocated my knee and am getting surgery. The owner didn’t even apologize. She just walked away with her dog. One of the people whom I was talking to at the time happened to be a nurse and helped me out and another man brought me water, but while i was laying on the ground (and later on the bench inside the park) people continued to let their dogs jump on me. You’d think people would try to avoid having their dogs use me as a spring board to get on top of the bench while I’m lying there in agony…
Otherwise, the park itself is hard to find (my friends who came to carry me away got lost) and is small and all sand with no grass.
If you go, avoid a great dane named Diesel.

This is the closest dog park to my house and sadly my least favorite. I’ve come up against a couple aggressive dogs with owners who weren’t watching out for them. It isn’t much to look at and doesn’t offer much protection from the sun or the loud noise from the freeway.
If you drive a little further you can find parks that offer more playful friends and better human conditions.

Do you like gnats?
What about hard-​packed dirt?
How do you feel about freeway traffic?
And electrical towers looming directly overhead, are you a fan?
If you answered yes to these questions, the Griffith Park Dog Park is the place for you! Located on a narrow isthmus between two of the east side’s grungiest landmarks, the 5 freeway and the «LA River», this dog park is the equivalent of a mangy stray: unappealing to look at, loud, and badly in need of both love and water.
But here’s what this park has going for it: the clientele. There are none of the barbie bitches or weird/​scary/​uhhh «king of the dog pack» types you find at the Laurel Canyon park on an average day. Everyone is friendly, low key, and much less clique-​y. The chicks here are from Glendale, which could be a plus or minus for you depending on what you want out of a dog park.
It’s also much smaller than the Laurel Canyon dog park, probably an eighth of the size. That’s also either a plus or minus for you depending on how you feel about walking through dog crap. There are many, many less dogs, which for my pooch is probably a good thing because Laurel makes him a little insane.
And seriously, while this «park» is ugly as sin, does your dog really care about that? Does the fact that the 5 is literally 10 yards away make him pissed to be here? No. He wants to run, sniff, do a little humping and take a number 2. No big deal.

There is always one dog when I go there… One dog (admittedly sometimes I am that dog) that is so utterly obnoxious he drives you to the lowly «small dog area». The big boy area isn’t that great to begin with. What with it’s bumpy, spotty grass and neglected poos that many an oblivious owner have left to bake in the sun (there is hardly any shade here). The people here are fairly unobservant. Hey, lady with the handful of yappy dogs biting and stealing my tennis balls, get off the cell phone and manage your little terrors! At least get off your a** and pick up their poodle-​chunks!
I know I sound like a bitch but I am a boy dog…
It’s not all bad. Fun can be had getting down and dusty playing with the other nice pooches, endlessly catching balls and chasing butterflies… And nothing is better than flopping around in the water dish. I guess I just wish that this park was a bit spiffier and had less of a run-​down feeling. For a small park it’s got its share of trees. Sadly, though they are all lining the perimeter of the fence. The little dog area is all dirt and no shade. No fun unless a few friends come with you to get away from that out of control pit bull.
Better than no park, but not that great.
If you see that guy who holds training classes here, you will see me exiting soon after…
added MAY 23: they planted more trees! Weeeeee.

If your dog doesn’t mind being just a few yards from the freeway or doesn’t mind the noises of the speeding cars and trucks then this is a great off-​leash dog park.
There’s two separate spaces: one for the well-​behaved, playful, social dogs and the other for my dog. Yes my dog is spoiled. Yes my dog barks incessantly. Yes my dog will claim his little corner and will not allow you to go near. Yes my dog barks if you seem to be having too much fun or not enough fun. That other little space for «timid/​shy» dogs is for my dog.
I take him here and he sniffs around and barks. People who come here expect that or at least they should. I know its time to go when the other dog parents escape to the other «social/​playful» area leaving my dog and his barks alone. So I let him bark, and bark, and bark.