When you stand side by side at the dog park, you can reveal your true selves – but not your names

‘Over 10 years frequenting dog parks I’ve heard people’s deepest secrets and I’ve shared mine,’ Melanie Tait writes. Photograph: K Thalhofer/Getty Images/iStockphoto

There’s a universal truth about dog parks: if you go to one regularly enough you’ll find out people’s deepest secrets even though you’ll probably never know their name.

The morning I was about to drive my packed car and two dogs away from our life in Hobart, I took Mabel and Goldie for their last run on the part of the beach near our house that was designated to make the lives of our canine pals joyous: the most beautiful dog park in the world.