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My husband is one of those professional dog walkers and never does his 'pack' of dogs surround people growling and barking. They may play with each other but these family pets haven't much interest in sourrounding people growling and barking which is why they are family pets. The reality is that the professional dog walkers careful vet the animals before they take them out walking, and again before they let them off the lead. These animals are these walkers business and any mishap or incident could ruin them. So they are not irresponsible at all with these animals. My husband speaks to other dog walkers on the heath most days and the level of entry of behaviour for the dogs that they walk is very high. This is these people's livelyhood dont forget, it isnt something people do lightheartedly. I walk on Hampstead Heath with him regularly and generally as in the case of most dog walkers he avoids people. In addition to this the dog walkers pick up poo - again this is their business and getting a bad reputation is bad for business. The walkers are also providing a valuable service to families where people work. Keeping dogs well exercised prevents nuisance barking and behavioural problems in dogs. Please everyone stop blaming the dog walkers. What about the children feeding the ducks and attracting rats to the heath with the left over bread? Those same rats eat birds eggs and kill baby birds. What about the grey squirrel who is not native to the UK and have killed off our native squirrels? What about the picnicers who leave their empty cans and wrappers lying about on the heath (which incidentally my facidious husband picks up most days)? As the comment above mentions what about the firework displays in breeding season? What about the drunks in the woods who I regularly find asleep under trees while walking in the woods? I have an idea, lets ban everything from the heath incase someone gets upset by it.