Off-Leash Area Open at Middlesex Fells Reservation

Editor's note: The byline on this article was corrected at 9 a.m.

Dog owners: rejoice.

Recently, the Fells Dog Owners’ Group (FellsDOG) celebrated the opening of a no-leash area for dogs at the Middlesex Fells Reservation in Stoneham.

Dog owners who had grown accustomed to Fells’ signs instructing them to leash their pets were happy to see a newly constructed sign inviting them to let their dogs run freely in the Sheepfold meadow.  

Arthur Cusolito, who was at Sheepfold with a fox hound named Pacino, said that it was a “good thing.”

Dan Dwyer and Phil Doherty, who were there with a black lab named Jack and a French bulldog named Claude, agreed.

“I come up here a lot,” Doherty said. “It’s good to know I won’t get a ticket.”

The effort to create a space for dogs at the Fells Reservation was spearheaded by FellsDOG, an online community that formed in 2007.

FellsDOG member and Somerville Dog Owners Group Chairwoman Michele Biscoe was at a celebration held at the Sheepfold on Saturday, Sept. 17 with her standard poodle, Strummer.

“It was an opportunity for a bunch of us who have been involved in this process to high-five each other and let our dogs off leash together without breaking the law for the first time,” she said.

“Sheepfold is a place that I discovered shortly after I adopted my dog,” Biscoe added. “It’s something that’s been in my sights.”

Biscoe called the achievement “hugely important,” saying that dog owners need places where they can bring their dogs to exercise.

“Of course it’s great for the dogs because they’re healthier, happier pets,” she said.

Biscoe added that in addition to the obvious benefits for pets, off-leash areas also provide benefits for the whole community.

“It gives a benefit back to the community because dogs that are well-socialized and get enough exercise are less likely to have negative behavior,” she said. “A tired dog is a good dog.” 

In Biscoe’s opinion, the off-leash area is a good start, but she thinks that the could be an even more dog-owner friendly place.  

“The other thing that people really need at the Fells is an opportunity to enjoy the trails with our dogs off leash,” she said.

If the past is any indication of future success, Biscoe may get her wish. Since forming the Somerville Dog Owners’ Group in 2004, she has has witnessed the opening of three no-leash areas in Somerville and, now, one in Stoneham.