Fast traffic, narrow sidewalks, and not a single pedestrian crossing in sight; some neighborhoods are not only unpleasant places to try to walk your dog — they’re downright dangerous. Without a huge back yard or a spacious dog park down the street, the act of taking your pup for a stroll could lead to injury or worse. (Here are the most common reasons people take their dog to the vet.)
24/7 Tempo has compiled a list of the worst cities to walk your dog, based on a report from LawnStarter. In the report, 174 of America’s largest cities were ranked based on their walkability, dog-friendly environment, safey, and services related to dog walking. Walkability is a score that takes into account pedestrian access and comfort. Can residents run errands without a car? Is there access to footpaths or sidewalks, and are these comfortable routes to businesses and parks?
In addition to a city’s walkability, are the sidewalks large enough to safely walk a dog past a group of people or another dog walker? LawnStarter’s environment metric takes into account the number of dog-friendly trails in a city, as well as the city’s ranking in their Best Dog Park Cities list. Here are large US cities with the most dog parks.
The dog walking services ranking includes the number of for-hire dog walkers per capita and their average cost, while the safety metric includes pedestrian deaths per capita. Of the 25 worst cities to walk your dog, nine were also ranked within the 25 most dangerous cities for pedestrians on the list.
Many of the worst cities for dog walking are in the South, and while multiple states have two cities on the list, only Texas surpassed that with seven of the worst cities to walk your dog. If you live in any of these cities, you may want to consider getting a cat.
Click here to see the 25 worst cities to walk your dog
25. Mobile, AL
> Overall score: 33.12/100
> Walkability rank: #136 out of 174
> Environment rank: #137 out of 174
> Services rank: #46 out of 174
> Safety rank: #110 out of 174
> Population: 188,710
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24. Plano, TX
> Overall score: 33.06/100
> Walkability rank: #104 out of 174
> Environment rank: #120 out of 174
> Services rank: #108 out of 174
> Safety rank: #22 out of 174
> Population: 285,494
23. Dallas, TX
> Overall score: 32.41/100
> Walkability rank: #67 out of 174
> Environment rank: #93 out of 174
> Services rank: #164 out of 174
> Safety rank: #154 out of 174
> Population: 1,343,565
22. Lakewood, CO
> Overall score: 32.37/100
> Walkability rank: #86 out of 174
> Environment rank: #163 out of 174
> Services rank: #84 out of 174
> Safety rank: #164 out of 174
> Population: 155,984
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21. Kansas City, KS
> Overall score: 32.23/100
> Walkability rank: #132 out of 174
> Environment rank: #122 out of 174
> Services rank: #138 out of 174
> Safety rank: #94 out of 174
> Population: 156,607
20. Grand Prairie, TX
> Overall score: 32.12/100
> Walkability rank: #136 out of 174
> Environment rank: #152 out of 174
> Services rank: #131 out of 174
> Safety rank: #49 out of 174
> Population: 194,522
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19. Little Rock, AR
> Overall score: 31.31/100
> Walkability rank: #136 out of 174
> Environment rank: #97 out of 174
> Services rank: #92 out of 174
> Safety rank: #170 out of 174
> Population: 202,591
18. Shreveport, LA
> Overall score: 30.64/100
> Walkability rank: #146 out of 174
> Environment rank: #144 out of 174
> Services rank: #104 out of 174
> Safety rank: #115 out of 174
> Population: 186,815
17. Columbus, GA
> Overall score: 30.58/100
> Walkability rank: #165 out of 174
> Environment rank: #130 out of 174
> Services rank: #26 out of 174
> Safety rank: #153 out of 174
> Population: 206,922
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16. Milwaukee, WI
> Overall score: 30.50/100
> Walkability rank: #31 out of 174
> Environment rank: #89 out of 174
> Services rank: #174 out of 174
> Safety rank: #100 out of 174
> Population: 577,222
15. Fort Worth, TX
> Overall score: 30.37/100
> Walkability rank: #119 out of 174
> Environment rank: #108 out of 174
> Services rank: #114 out of 174
> Safety rank: #83 out of 174
> Population: 918,915
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14. Arlington, TX
> Overall score: 30.20/100
> Walkability rank: #110 out of 174
> Environment rank: #118 out of 174
> Services rank: #135 out of 174
> Safety rank: #65 out of 174
> Population: 398,860
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13. Oklahoma City, OK
> Overall score: 30.20/100
> Walkability rank: #130 out of 174
> Environment rank: #99 out of 174
> Services rank: #127 out of 174
> Safety rank: #143 out of 174
> Population: 655,158
12. Jacksonville, FL
> Overall score: 29.79/100
> Walkability rank: #161 out of 174
> Environment rank: #86 out of 174
> Services rank: #111 out of 174
> Safety rank: #146 out of 174
> Population: 949,611
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11. Detroit, MI
> Overall score: 29.75/100
> Walkability rank: #50 out of 174
> Environment rank: #112 out of 174
> Services rank: #173 out of 174
> Safety rank: #161 out of 174
> Population: 639,111
10. Tulsa, OK
> Overall score: 29.70/100
> Walkability rank: #104 out of 174
> Environment rank: #115 out of 174
> Services rank: #88 out of 174
> Safety rank: #156 out of 174
> Population: 401,760
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9. Laredo, TX
> Overall score: 29.27/100
> Walkability rank: #116 out of 174
> Environment rank: #166 out of 174
> Services rank: #126 out of 174
> Safety rank: #20 out of 174
> Population: 255,205
8. Fayetteville, NC
> Overall score: 29.08/100
> Walkability rank: #170 out of 174
> Environment rank: #158 out of 174
> Services rank: #25 out of 174
> Safety rank: #125 out of 174
> Population: 211,674
7. Macon, GA
> Overall score: 28.63/100
> Walkability rank: #150 out of 174
> Environment rank: #134 out of 174
> Services rank: #60 out of 174
> Safety rank: #171 out of 174
> Population: 90,107
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6. Montgomery, AL
> Overall score: 28.62/100
> Walkability rank: #161 out of 174
> Environment rank: #137 out of 174
> Services rank: #128 out of 174
> Safety rank: #112 out of 174
> Population: 200,603
5. Memphis, TN
> Overall score: 28.40/100
> Walkability rank: #119 out of 174
> Environment rank: #101 out of 174
> Services rank: #147 out of 174
> Safety rank: #167 out of 174
> Population: 633,104
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4. Garland, TX
> Overall score: 28.36/100
> Walkability rank: #98 out of 174
> Environment rank: #157 out of 174
> Services rank: #122 out of 174
> Safety rank: #74 out of 174
> Population: 246,018
3. Port St. Lucie, FL
> Overall score: 27.85/100
> Walkability rank: #174 out of 174
> Environment rank: #152 out of 174
> Services rank: #169 out of 174
> Safety rank: #2 out of 174
> Population: 204,851
2. Wichita, KS
> Overall score: 26.48/100
> Walkability rank: #119 out of 174
> Environment rank: #128 out of 174
> Services rank: #166 out of 174
> Safety rank: #89 out of 174
> Population: 389,914
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1. Jackson, MS
> Overall score: 25.38/100
> Walkability rank: #161 out of 174
> Environment rank: #163 out of 174
> Services rank: #106 out of 174
> Safety rank: #168 out of 174
> Population: 153,701
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