Thursday, August 21, 2014

Responsible Pet Parenting

Meet Duke:

He's a lovable goofball (much like his owner), that like car rides, long walks, and licking me no matter how many times I tell him no.  I'm not a dog person, I think they are needy, slobbery, smelly, and a lot more work in terms of pet care than your average cat.  I tolerate this one better than most because he is (mostly) well behaved, doesn't drool too much, and happens to belong to one of my best friends.

This friend of mine, is one of the best pet parents I know.  He truly loves his fur babies and takes excellent care of them.  From time to time I've been known to help out with friends pets when they're traveling or even just stuck at work.  Yesterday was one of those days, it was hot and muggy and the potential for rain was there so I went over to take Duke and Hermione (another small, mostly not annoying dog) inside after they had spent the morning outside in their nice little fenced in enclosure.

Duke does have one particularly bad habit that my friend hasn't been able to train out of him so far.  He likes to run, and does not come back when he is called.  In the process of trying to get the two dogs inside Duke managed to wiggle out of his harness and before I could turn around he had ran halfway across the neighborhood. I thought perhaps if I could keep him in eyesight, he would wear himself out (hah!) and I would be able to slip the leash back on him and return him home.  So I gave chase, walking, letting him zigzag all over, waiting for him to let me get close.

After a few blocks he started to approach a house where there were some people outside.  I called out to grab him!  Before I could get close enough to stop him, Duke got too close to the dog that was chained in their yard, and it attacked...
At the vet office, waiting to be seen
Duke's injury all stitched up.
I think you can tell a lot about people by seeing how they care for their pets.  This is what I observed in this particular families yard:  There were two pit bulls or pit mixes, chained up outside, in such as way that their areas didn't overlap.  All the grass and plant growth was completely gone from the circles around where the dogs were tethered.  From this I would guess that those dogs are outside on those chains a majority of the time.  Since they can't even be close to one another I would say they are probably quite aggressive to other dogs and possibly other animals.  I will admit that Duke was loose, and on the other person's property, but I don't condone the keeping of dogs that attack without provocation.

I've spent enough time with Duke to know that he is an incredibly friendly dog, and is safe to have around other dogs and cats.  My assumption is when he went up to the dog chained outside it was to say "hi, wanna play?" not  "hey, let's try and kill each other".  Also after the day was done we went back by the house and both dogs were still chained up outside, leading me to believe the one that attacked did not need the extensive veterinary care that Duke did.

So here is my point after this long and kind of sad story.  If you are going to have a pet, especially a dog, you need to take the time to socialize them, with a variety of people and other dogs.  Do not just leave them chained up outside all the time.  That isn't a pet, it's a living lawn ornament and a poor one at that.  It's wrong and cruel.  If you're going to have a pet, bring them into your home, truly make them part of your family.  I also want to say that if you're going to have a type of dog that was specifically bred for years to be a guard and fighting dog, that you need to spend extra time and effort in training and socializing.  Don't assume because the dog is good with your family/friends/kids/other pets that it won't attack strangers and other animals.

Dogs are not low maintenance pets.  If you want something that requires minimal care, get a fish.