Dog Meets Proposed at Grange Park

A club whose members put dogs through their paces using a lure on a course would like to rent a section of Grange Road Park in Upper Macungie periodically for meets.

Members of the Lehigh Valley Coursing Club presented their request to the township Recreation Board last week, saying they need about two acres of open space to set up their course, plus parking for 20 cars.  The meets run from dawn to dusk. 

Mary Ellen Shriver of Schnecksville said the club uses no bait for the dogs. Instead the dogs chase a plastic bag with a piece of fur as a lure on a pulley system that moves around the field by a small generator-driven motor. The dogs are muzzled during the race.

The club is fully insured and all the dogs are required to be on a lead at all times when they aren’t running the course, she said. Most events attract 40 to 50 dogs, 20 cars and about 25 people. “We pay our rent, we put up our own Porta-potti and you won’t even know we were there,” Shriver said. The dogs eligible to take part are sighthounds, which include such breeds as greyhounds, Irish wolfhounds, Borzoi, and Afghan hounds.

Shriver offered to give the Recreation Board recommendations from the parks department in Hunderdon County, N.J. where the club has held other meets.

Recreation Board member Chuck Thomas  asked if the meets are a form of dog racing. “I’m completely opposed to dog racing,” Thomas said.

“It has nothing to do with greyhound racing whatsoever,” responded Shriver, who said there is no wagering at the meets. She said the dogs are well treated and the dogs’ safety is a big concern. “This is what they were bred to do.”

The meets follow American Kennel Club rules for Lure Coursing, she said.  The dogs are judged on their performance and points are awarded for each event. 

Shriver said the club thought of the 162-acre Grange Road Park, which is between Ruppsville Road and the Route 222 bypass, because it has a large open space. “We just don’t find open property anymore,” she said. “Everything is piecemeal or portioned off.” 

Recreation Board members said they would take the request under consideration and let the club know.