Bark Watch?

Daryl Barnett says there is no better rush than seeing her mixed black Labrador, Imp, take her morning dash along the Venice Beach shoreline with that panting, throw-me-the-bone-again grin.

These days, though, Imp’s only chance to romp in the sand comes before daylight, when no one is around to enforce city laws that prohibit all dogs on the beach, leashed or not.

But if the 49-year-old Barnett has her way, she and other beach dog-walkers will soon be liberated. On Wednesday, the city Department of Recreation and Parks will consider an unprecedented proposal for Los Angeles: the creation of three dog beaches along a Venice Beach shoreline already heavily populated with humans.

If approved, the ambitious plan--supported by Barnett and hundreds of beach-area dog owners--would establish the city’s first surfside place where dogs could run free.

The Venice dog beaches would join three existing city dog parks and a handful of dog-friendly beaches across Southern California, a victory for avid canine activists and a defeat for some environmentalists and other authorities.

Under the plan, three stretches of beach in Venice and Marina del Rey--ranging from four to six blocks apiece--would be open to unleashed dogs before 8 a.m and one hour after sunset, Monday through Friday.

Barnett said the 600-member group she co-founded--Friendly, Responsible, Environmentally Evolved Pet Lovers Alliance Yes! (FREEPLAY)--symbolizes the special place dogs have taken in Southern California society, and how vital the beach is to their happiness.

“The minute Imp hits the sand, she becomes a different dog,” says Barnett, a Venice apartment manager. “She jumps up and down and runs around in circles. She loves the freedom of it, just to be able to run. It’s innocent fun and she’s not hurting a soul out there. So, why can’t she do it?”

Los Angeles’ chief legislative analyst concluded that she can’t do it because off-leash dogs could create a public health hazard. Other city officials say they don’t think animals have a place on the beach.

Environmental groups such as Heal the Bay have protested turning the Venice coast over to the canines, arguing that pollution will spread and enforcement will be impossible.

One indelicate problem, they say, concerns dog droppings.

“You’re relying on dog owners to clean up after themselves and the biggest problem is going to be feces control,” said Jaque Forrest, Heal the Bay’s staff scientist. “If you’re talking about 3,000 dogs, you’re talking about an amazing amount of feces.”

Barnett says her group has considered that problem, talking with insiders at some of the other dog beaches in Southern California--in Laguna Beach and San Diego--where officials say their experience shows that both man and beast can coexist on the beach.

At San Diego’s Ocean Beach, for example, more than 500 canines can congregate on a summer day. Los Angeles animal regulation officials say that scenario--even for a few hours a day--would pose an enforcement nightmare.

“It would encourage visitors and other people to bring their dogs or think its OK to bring their dogs at any hour,” said Lt. Derek Brown, head of the West Los Angeles Animal Care and Control Center. “It would definitely be an enforcement challenge.”

Recreation and Parks officials said there are only three parks in Los Angeles where dogs can legally play without leashes, located in Encino, Silver Lake and Laurel Canyon. There is also one in Santa Monica, limited to residents of that city.

Los Angeles City Councilwoman Ruth Galanter plans an off-leash dog park in 2 1/2-acre Westminster Park, just a few blocks from the Venice boardwalk. Dog critics say that the park should satisfy dogs’ urge to roam and that prime beachfront isn’t the answer.

Under a bright sun early Tuesday, half a dozen brown and black dogs hurled themselves down the beach illegally, yelping and jumping as their owners watched, steaming coffee in one hand and pooper scoopers in the other.

They called to their pets, then glanced around surreptitiously.

“I have just as much of a right to be on that beach with my dog, responsibly, as anyone else,” said Lisa Aycock, 32, with her brown-speckled Catahoula leopard dog, Echo. “She provides me with protection and companionship, and I need to provide her with exercise . . . and a place to socialize.”

Since last February, repeated crackdowns have made illegal dog walkers nervous.

“This got to be like guerrilla warfare,” said Judy Lichter, 45, with her boxer, Gammon. “We were hiding in doorways.”

Police in the last year have handed out hundreds of citations--at $77 each--enforcing a city leash law and a second ordinance that bans any canine on city beaches.

“We’ve had complaints from other residents about running over defecation, about being chased by dogs, from families going out with their babies,” said Los Angeles Police Officer Brent Honore, senior lead officer for Venice Beach.

After successfully fighting three anti-leash citations, Barnett says she will continue to do clandestinely what she and Imp should have the right to do legally: hit the beach.

“When you live in Venice Beach, you have to put up with so much stuff,” she said. “There’s crime, gangs, thousands of people crowding the boardwalk. Still, all the police find time to do is go after the dogs with a vengeance.”

Barnett said all city officials have to do is look south to San Diego for their answers.

San Diego city lifeguard Lt. Nick Lerma agreed: “Dogs are welcomed here. Ocean Beach is a testimony that this kind of thing can work.”