Dayton's first Wagtown Dog Trail starts this weekend with paw painting

The trick to completing any successful project is just putting one paw in front of the other.

Two and a half years in the making, the first official Wagtown Dog Trail will be installed this Saturday, June 22, when thousands of puppy paw prints are painted on the paved, one-mile path. A part of the long-term Wagtown plan, the trail will connect two Dayton green spaces, Highland Park and Cleveland Park. The public is invited out to the event to help beginning at 9 a.m. and wrapping up at noon. Following the event, volunteers will be treated to a complimentary lunch from Pizza Factory.

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"The one-mile loop will guide walkers along a scenic tour of the architecture and charm of Walnut Hills and Linden Heights," according to the event's Facebook page. "The route will be improved with six new pet waste stations using recycled materials and stocked with used grocery bags. Directional paw prints will guide your way along this tree-lined route."

Credit: Wagtown

Credit: Wagtown

Wagtown, founded by Daytonian Beth Miller, is a nonprofit that is committed to creating a healthier community for dogs with increased physical activity, more dog-friendly policies, eliminating breed profiling and advocating strong animal cruelty legislation.

One of the connected park destinations, Highland, is planned to be Dayton’s first “official” dog park. There are many moving parts, including establishing off-leash policies and addressing other safety concerns that need to be taken care of first, Miller said. However, the installation of this first Wagtown Trail is definite progress toward that goal.

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“Until now, we’ve been taking things out like trash and debris, making sure we talk with neighbors and let them know what’s coming, listening to any feedback. … After we’ve made sure all our ducks are in a row, now we’re ready to start painting the paws and changing the infrastructure of Dayton to be more dog-friendly.”

Although the official dog park designation for Highland is not yet possible, Miller said the continuous work that’s been done to improve the park has created more energy and attention for Highland than it has seen in decades.

“We’re very excited. It’s been a long time coming. We spent about two and a half years of our startup just doing research,” Miller said.