Man's Best Friend a Victim: Chaining/Ignoring Dogs
By Tom Hennessy
Staff columnist

It barked day and night, in sunshine and in rain. It barked when cars
went by or when the street was deserted. It barked 24/7.

When we moved away, the dog was still barking. But since it did so
behind the wooden gate of a house across the street, we never saw the
pooch. It would be inaccurate to say we fled Cerritos years ago to
escape that dog, but leaving the pooch sure was a bonus. The dog was
never walked, as far as we could tell. Nor was it ever allowed in our
neighbor's house. What was the point, we wondered, of having a dog
under such circumstances?

Dogs as victims
I remembered that pooch last week when a letter came from a friend,
Miriam Yarden, aka Dog's Best Friend. One of the founders of the Long
Beach Dog Park, Yarden specializes in dog behavior. The subject of
her letter: barking dogs ignored by owners.

"You see him in every community," she said, "a dog relegated to the
yard, porch or outdoor run; in effect, abandoned emotionally and
socially. He is fed outside, and on a hot day he may have finished
his water, and his bowl is empty for hours. In winter and rain, he
shivers. In summers, he languishes from the heat. All year round, he
suffers." At the dawn of time, she notes, man and dog were partners.
Man shared his food and dry quarters and brought the dog into his
"pack' the family. But you do not have to go far in most
neighborhoods today to find humans who have abandoned the
partnership, but still insist on having dogs. In such cases, says
Yarden, the dog can go in one of two directions. "He may become
listless, lethargic and emotionally deprived. Or he may become
hyperactive, fearful, noisy and aggressive even vicious.

As for providing protection, Yarden dismisses the notion. "Dogs do not
protect back yards. They may bark at people, cats, other dogs, birds,
butterflies or falling leaves, but this is not protective behavior.
This is boredom, and an intruder can easily override it with an
offering of food or friendship. "However, if the dog has free access
to the inside via a dog door, he will protect the house because it is
his den as well. Such dogs are the best and most reliable protectors.
At the same time, they are also protected from the elements, abusive
strangers, dog-nappers and poison."

Issue in L.A.
Yarden's timing coincides with that of the Los Angeles City Council.
It voted last week to draft an ordinance that would ban the practice
of permanently chaining dogs in yards. (No, I don't know if the
Cerritos dog was chained.)

The impending crackdown has the support of organizations such as the
Southern California Veterinary Medical Association, whose president,
Robert Goldman, has been quoted as saying, "These are the dogs that
bite. When someone ties a dog to a chain in their yard, you've got a
dog that is a time bomb."

Other cities, such as New Orleans and Washington, D.C., have enacted
such laws. Los Angeles would be the first in California to do so.
And if L.A. passes the law, can Long Beach be far behind? Well, yes.
Our own City Council is not famous for jumping on the bandwagon of
progressive legislation. But then, there is always the possibility
that a person with a backyard dog, a 24/7 barker, may move next door
to a council member.

Article writer Tom Hennessy can be reached at (562) 499-1270 or by e-
mail at Scribe17@aol.com AND/OR: Letters to the editor at:
http://www.presstelegram.com/Stories/0,1413,204%257E23186%257E,00.html

Posted on SHARE Yahoo group Aug 31, 2004