5 Best Dog Parks in Santa Fe Where You Can Unleash the Fun

If you’re wondering if Santa Fe has dog parks where you can take your four-legged friend for a fun time, you’re in luck. Santa Fe has quite a few options to explore, from the huge and immensely popular Frank S. Ortiz Dog Park to pocket-park-sized areas. Some Santa Fe neighborhoods have more dog-friendly options than others, but the city is compact enough that everyone can find a place to play.

You’ll find some basic rules apply at about every dog park, including ensuring your dog is at least four months old and caught up on vaccinations, that unneutered males or females in heat are not allowed, you must monitor your dog’s behavior, and (it should go without saying, but . . .) you need to clean up after your pet.

Let’s review some of the more popular places to take your dog for a good time in Santa Fe.

Fort Marcy Dog Park

490 Bishops Lodge Road

This park offers two fenced areas, one for petite pups and another for the big guys. The surface is wood chips, which makes it easy on the paws. The Fort Marcy Complex has 30 acres with tennis courts, play equipment grills, restrooms, and an indoor fitness center and pool for when you go for some exercise without your four-legged workout buddy.

Frank S. Ortiz Dog Park

160 Camino de Las Crucitas

This is the “big dog” of Santa Fe dog parks! If you have dogs that really like to explore, this unfenced park has 138 acres of trails and desert for their sniffing and running pleasure. The park offers a shaded area with a table for those looking for a rest, but you may be too busy tracking your dog’s adventures to relax! There are 13 benches around the park and three dog water stations.

This park is so big (the largest of its kind in the country) and so popular it has its own 501(c)(3) organization that supports enhancements like the shade structure and benches and organizes park cleanup days (with donuts and coffee!). They hope to create a fenced small-dog area and are accepting donations to help match a donation that started the project rolling.

Love the park? You can support it by volunteering or even purchasing a piece of art donated by area artist John Alsip. His pieces are created from objects found at the park. Learn more at the Dog Park Project’s website.

Salvador Perez Dog Park

Dog with a blue ball and man at dog park. — Playing at a dog park is fun for dogs and their people.

601 Alta Vista

You may know this park as “the train park” since there’s a display featuring a vintage Santa Fe Railroad locomotive in the more than 16-acre park. Dogs have their own play area near the pool and McGee Memorial Chapel.

Santa Fe Humane Society Dog Park

100 Caja del Rio, near Tom Aragon Softball Complex

It makes sense that a humane society that works hard all year to help pets in need would also provide a place for dogs and their people to play. On the shelter’s 100 acres, you can find a fenced seven-acre community dog park for dogs that play well with others. For dogs that need to burn off energy but are better off alone, the park even has three small dog parks to be used by one dog at a time.

Owners of small dogs will be happy to find Samantha’s Park of Small Dogs across the entrance drive from the large park. This area is for dogs smaller than 30 pounds or weak/impaired dogs of any size. Of course, if you are looking for a new canine companion, the shelter has plenty of dogs waiting to be adopted.

Villa Linda Dog Park

Wagon Wheel Road

This small half-acre off-leash dog park is conveniently located near Santa Fe Place Mall. It is next to Villa Linda Park, which encompasses more than 11 acres and offers picnic tables, play equipment, and a multi-purpose field.